Datasets:

electricsheepafrica
/

africa-synth-financial-inclusion-digital-payments-usage-africa-all

country string	year int64	urban_rural string	gender string	age int64	age_group string	income_quintile string	education string	account_ownership int64	digital_literacy int64	smartphone_ownership int64	internet_access int64	digital_payment_use int64	merchant_acceptance_rate float64	payment_frequency_monthly int64	avg_transaction_value_usd float64	preferred_payment_method string	payment_types_used string	payment_purposes string	primary_barrier string	payment_success_rate float64	cash_usage_ratio float64	scenario string
Uganda	2,020	rural	female	65	55+	middle	none	0	3	0	1	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.654	low_burden
Mali	2,024	urban	female	43	35-44	fourth	secondary	1	4	0	1	1	0.388	13	20	mobile_money	mobile_money	government_services,entertainment	none	0.779	0.283	low_burden
Rwanda	2,018	rural	male	48	45-54	fourth	tertiary	1	8	0	0	1	0.05	4	104.43	mobile_money	card_payment,bank_transfer,qr_code	transport,government_services,healthcare	none	0.912	0.42	low_burden
Malawi	2,021	urban	male	34	25-34	lowest	primary	1	10	1	0	1	0.52	8	25.77	online_payment	ussd_payment,online_payment	education,business_to_business,utilities	none	0.964	0.547	low_burden
Malawi	2,024	rural	female	63	55+	lowest	tertiary	0	10	0	0	0	0.19	0	0	cash	none	none	no_internet	0	0.735	low_burden
DRC	2,025	urban	female	19	15-24	fourth	secondary	0	4	0	1	0	0.296	0	0	cash	none	none	technical_problems	0	0.702	low_burden
Uganda	2,020	rural	female	30	25-34	highest	tertiary	0	9	1	0	0	0.174	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.771	low_burden
Niger	2,023	urban	female	69	55+	highest	primary	0	9	1	1	1	0.364	12	69	mobile_money	mobile_money,digital_wallet	business_to_business,transport,utilities	none	0.888	0.391	low_burden
Ghana	2,019	urban	female	41	35-44	highest	none	1	2	1	1	1	0.28	5	163.06	mobile_money	online_payment,digital_wallet	online_shopping,education	none	0.956	0.402	low_burden
Uganda	2,018	rural	female	24	15-24	middle	none	0	8	1	0	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.883	low_burden
Zambia	2,020	urban	female	37	35-44	highest	secondary	1	6	1	1	1	0.206	10	93.86	ussd_payment	digital_wallet,mobile_money,ussd_payment	business_to_business,bill_split	none	0.688	0.465	low_burden
South Africa	2,025	urban	female	29	25-34	second	tertiary	1	5	1	1	1	0.481	8	39.22	digital_wallet	ussd_payment,bank_transfer	education,utilities,government_services,bill_split	none	0.692	0.196	low_burden
Mali	2,023	rural	female	43	35-44	fourth	primary	0	8	0	1	0	0.107	0	0	cash	none	none	technical_problems	0	0.701	low_burden
Mali	2,021	urban	male	27	25-34	highest	none	1	10	1	1	1	0.446	7	80.92	online_payment	card_payment,qr_code	government_services,entertainment	none	0.362	0.388	low_burden
Niger	2,020	rural	male	36	35-44	fourth	none	1	6	0	1	1	0.062	4	36.48	digital_wallet	qr_code,digital_wallet,ussd_payment	education,government_services,groceries,bill_split	none	0.568	0.441	low_burden
Mali	2,019	rural	male	64	55+	second	secondary	0	3	0	0	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	no_internet	0	0.914	low_burden
Zambia	2,020	urban	female	19	15-24	second	tertiary	1	8	1	1	1	0.4	6	63.97	mobile_money	ussd_payment,digital_wallet	government_services,bill_split,business_to_business,education,utilities	none	0.856	0.177	low_burden
Uganda	2,019	rural	female	57	55+	second	primary	1	6	1	1	0	0.07	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.533	low_burden
DRC	2,019	urban	male	19	15-24	second	secondary	0	10	1	0	0	0.32	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.655	low_burden
Malawi	2,023	rural	female	40	35-44	fourth	secondary	1	8	0	0	1	0.191	6	66	bank_transfer	bank_transfer,digital_wallet	entertainment,education,groceries,transport	none	0.94	0.198	low_burden
Zambia	2,019	urban	male	51	45-54	fourth	tertiary	1	9	0	0	1	0.245	2	26.03	mobile_money	online_payment,qr_code	healthcare,education,business_to_business,government_services,bill_split	none	0.891	0.313	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,018	urban	male	67	55+	lowest	secondary	1	9	1	1	0	0.357	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.763	low_burden
Nigeria	2,022	urban	female	28	25-34	fourth	primary	0	9	1	0	1	0.296	8	56.15	qr_code	ussd_payment	transport,online_shopping,business_to_business,utilities,bill_split	none	0.813	0.228	low_burden
Mozambique	2,020	rural	male	17	15-24	second	secondary	0	5	1	0	0	0.129	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.816	low_burden
Mali	2,021	rural	male	56	55+	middle	secondary	0	2	1	1	0	0.123	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.886	low_burden
Rwanda	2,019	rural	female	64	55+	second	tertiary	1	10	0	1	1	0.05	6	36.71	digital_wallet	bank_transfer	groceries,healthcare,education	none	0.773	0.211	low_burden
Malawi	2,019	rural	male	46	45-54	middle	secondary	1	6	0	1	1	0.091	1	60.92	digital_wallet	card_payment,ussd_payment,bank_transfer	business_to_business,education,groceries,transport,bill_split	none	0.756	0.325	low_burden
DRC	2,021	rural	female	18	15-24	fourth	none	1	10	1	1	1	0.121	4	152.13	qr_code	ussd_payment,mobile_money,digital_wallet	online_shopping,entertainment,bill_split,healthcare,business_to_business	none	0.744	0.381	low_burden
Senegal	2,023	rural	female	42	35-44	fourth	secondary	0	7	0	0	1	0.3	6	71.21	ussd_payment	card_payment,online_payment,qr_code	entertainment,transport	none	0.927	0.263	low_burden
Malawi	2,021	rural	female	36	35-44	fourth	secondary	0	5	0	0	0	0.089	0	0	cash	none	none	merchant_refusal	0	0.963	low_burden
Malawi	2,022	rural	female	39	35-44	second	primary	0	7	0	1	0	0.108	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.791	low_burden
Ghana	2,022	urban	male	17	15-24	fourth	tertiary	1	10	1	1	1	0.423	4	36.22	online_payment	digital_wallet,mobile_money	entertainment,online_shopping,bill_split	none	0.854	0.244	low_burden
Uganda	2,020	rural	female	32	25-34	lowest	primary	0	10	0	0	1	0.119	5	14.1	mobile_money	ussd_payment,digital_wallet,mobile_money	groceries,online_shopping	none	0.729	0.173	low_burden
Senegal	2,020	rural	male	69	55+	middle	tertiary	1	5	0	0	0	0.148	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.892	low_burden
Mozambique	2,021	urban	male	17	15-24	middle	primary	1	6	1	1	1	0.313	7	67.18	card_payment	digital_wallet	entertainment,business_to_business,groceries,bill_split	none	0.841	0.538	low_burden
Kenya	2,018	urban	female	65	55+	fourth	none	0	5	1	1	1	0.429	5	36.84	ussd_payment	qr_code,ussd_payment,card_payment	online_shopping,education,business_to_business,transport,healthcare	none	0.785	0.303	low_burden
DRC	2,023	urban	male	43	35-44	highest	secondary	0	3	1	1	1	0.329	12	95.4	mobile_money	ussd_payment	utilities,education,transport,entertainment	none	0.712	0.128	low_burden
DRC	2,022	rural	female	47	45-54	second	secondary	0	5	0	1	0	0.117	0	0	cash	none	none	technical_problems	0	0.604	low_burden
Tanzania	2,020	urban	male	66	55+	fourth	tertiary	1	7	0	0	1	0.312	9	41.02	bank_transfer	ussd_payment	government_services,groceries,business_to_business,bill_split	none	0.743	0.533	low_burden
Rwanda	2,020	rural	female	26	25-34	second	secondary	0	3	0	0	0	0.061	0	0	cash	none	none	merchant_refusal	0	0.635	low_burden
Nigeria	2,020	rural	male	69	55+	middle	none	1	9	1	1	1	0.119	3	29.9	ussd_payment	mobile_money,ussd_payment,digital_wallet	transport,entertainment	none	0.923	0.444	low_burden
Mali	2,023	rural	male	30	25-34	fourth	tertiary	1	9	0	0	1	0.161	6	46.55	online_payment	digital_wallet	online_shopping,entertainment,healthcare,business_to_business,education	none	0.913	0.58	low_burden
Niger	2,024	urban	female	34	25-34	fourth	secondary	1	5	1	0	1	0.479	11	58.5	ussd_payment	card_payment,bank_transfer,digital_wallet	bill_split,business_to_business,government_services,utilities	none	0.895	0.15	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,018	rural	male	39	35-44	highest	primary	1	2	1	0	1	0.057	8	80.34	bank_transfer	card_payment,digital_wallet	online_shopping,business_to_business,education	none	0.725	0.487	low_burden
Uganda	2,021	rural	female	48	45-54	fourth	tertiary	0	8	1	0	0	0.08	0	0	cash	none	none	limited_acceptance	0	0.882	low_burden
South Africa	2,018	urban	male	32	25-34	second	none	1	3	1	1	0	0.449	0	0	cash	none	none	no_account	0	0.658	low_burden
Malawi	2,021	urban	female	58	55+	highest	none	1	3	0	1	1	0.338	8	38.42	bank_transfer	bank_transfer,qr_code	healthcare,government_services,bill_split	none	0.776	0.125	low_burden
Mozambique	2,019	urban	female	16	15-24	highest	secondary	1	7	1	1	1	0.36	8	159.06	mobile_money	qr_code,bank_transfer,ussd_payment	online_shopping,utilities,business_to_business	none	0.92	0.339	low_burden
Niger	2,020	urban	female	51	45-54	second	secondary	0	10	1	1	1	0.389	10	45.17	mobile_money	card_payment,ussd_payment	transport,bill_split,groceries	none	0.777	0.464	low_burden
Mali	2,021	rural	female	51	45-54	lowest	secondary	0	1	0	0	0	0.095	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.666	low_burden
Mali	2,020	rural	male	44	35-44	second	tertiary	0	7	0	0	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	no_internet	0	0.911	low_burden
Nigeria	2,021	rural	female	48	45-54	fourth	primary	1	6	1	1	1	0.113	4	57.94	mobile_money	ussd_payment,qr_code	healthcare,transport	none	0.827	0.337	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,024	rural	female	56	55+	highest	tertiary	1	4	1	1	1	0.236	3	161.11	mobile_money	ussd_payment,bank_transfer	business_to_business,online_shopping,government_services	none	0.968	0.378	low_burden
Zambia	2,024	rural	female	64	55+	fourth	none	1	6	0	0	1	0.163	6	75.69	ussd_payment	mobile_money	utilities,transport	none	0.902	0.09	low_burden
Zambia	2,018	rural	female	27	25-34	second	none	0	8	0	1	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.847	low_burden
Kenya	2,021	rural	female	41	35-44	lowest	primary	1	2	1	1	1	0.09	5	23.43	qr_code	card_payment	government_services,healthcare	none	0.936	0.602	low_burden
Senegal	2,024	urban	female	45	35-44	middle	none	0	10	1	1	1	0.559	5	41.2	mobile_money	qr_code,digital_wallet,bank_transfer	transport,groceries,bill_split	none	0.96	0.156	low_burden
Nigeria	2,022	rural	male	33	25-34	second	primary	0	4	0	1	1	0.139	2	37.9	mobile_money	qr_code,card_payment,ussd_payment	bill_split,online_shopping,government_services,business_to_business,groceries	none	0.806	0.499	low_burden
Mali	2,019	urban	female	68	55+	lowest	tertiary	0	6	0	1	0	0.166	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.627	low_burden
Niger	2,022	rural	female	43	35-44	lowest	secondary	0	1	1	1	0	0.152	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.95	low_burden
Mozambique	2,019	rural	female	47	45-54	lowest	secondary	1	6	0	0	0	0.059	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.97	low_burden
Mali	2,018	rural	male	25	15-24	lowest	none	1	7	0	1	0	0.05	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.762	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,023	urban	female	37	35-44	fourth	tertiary	1	4	1	1	0	0.34	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.936	low_burden
South Africa	2,022	rural	female	49	45-54	second	primary	1	3	1	1	1	0.113	2	15.52	bank_transfer	bank_transfer	government_services,education,bill_split,healthcare	none	0.767	0.4	low_burden
Malawi	2,024	urban	female	38	35-44	second	secondary	0	9	0	1	1	0.368	6	22.05	mobile_money	mobile_money,digital_wallet,card_payment	healthcare,education,groceries,online_shopping,government_services	none	0.894	0.282	low_burden
Tanzania	2,020	rural	male	57	55+	middle	secondary	1	8	0	1	1	0.123	6	16.9	online_payment	qr_code	transport,education,online_shopping	none	0.906	0.437	low_burden
Mozambique	2,024	urban	male	22	15-24	highest	none	0	6	1	1	1	0.517	9	47.64	mobile_money	card_payment,ussd_payment	business_to_business,healthcare,entertainment,education	none	0.855	0.228	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,021	rural	male	23	15-24	fourth	secondary	0	8	0	0	1	0.118	5	97.67	mobile_money	card_payment,digital_wallet	business_to_business,utilities,education,healthcare	none	0.957	0.409	low_burden
Uganda	2,023	rural	male	33	25-34	middle	tertiary	1	10	0	1	0	0.129	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.59	low_burden
Zambia	2,018	urban	female	32	25-34	fourth	primary	1	6	0	0	1	0.291	6	64.48	online_payment	online_payment,bank_transfer	transport,education,government_services,entertainment	none	0.954	0.278	low_burden
Mali	2,018	urban	male	59	55+	fourth	secondary	1	3	0	1	1	0.322	9	40.8	bank_transfer	qr_code,digital_wallet	entertainment,transport,online_shopping	none	0.86	0.576	low_burden
Nigeria	2,024	rural	female	62	55+	fourth	tertiary	1	2	0	0	1	0.211	5	32.26	mobile_money	digital_wallet,online_payment,ussd_payment	government_services,online_shopping,utilities	none	0.843	0.089	low_burden
Malawi	2,024	urban	male	40	35-44	middle	primary	0	10	1	0	0	0.551	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.909	low_burden
Uganda	2,025	urban	male	42	35-44	middle	primary	0	5	1	1	0	0.324	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.947	low_burden
Niger	2,020	urban	female	31	25-34	second	primary	0	10	1	1	1	0.326	10	13.01	bank_transfer	digital_wallet,online_payment	business_to_business,transport,bill_split,government_services,groceries	none	0.855	0.305	low_burden
Zambia	2,018	urban	female	44	35-44	second	secondary	1	5	1	1	0	0.263	0	0	cash	none	none	technical_problems	0	0.904	low_burden
Tanzania	2,025	rural	male	53	45-54	second	primary	0	8	0	0	0	0.198	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.719	low_burden
Ghana	2,022	rural	male	54	45-54	second	primary	0	4	1	1	0	0.199	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.8	low_burden
Senegal	2,019	urban	female	68	55+	second	primary	0	8	0	0	1	0.331	2	14.15	digital_wallet	ussd_payment,bank_transfer	groceries,transport,entertainment,education,bill_split	none	0.869	0.104	low_burden
Niger	2,024	rural	female	46	45-54	middle	tertiary	0	10	0	0	0	0.193	0	0	cash	none	none	technical_problems	0	0.729	low_burden
South Africa	2,025	urban	male	33	25-34	middle	tertiary	0	10	1	1	1	0.553	8	25.65	online_payment	digital_wallet,card_payment,bank_transfer	groceries,entertainment,education,bill_split	none	0.996	0.506	low_burden
Malawi	2,020	urban	female	18	15-24	lowest	secondary	1	4	1	0	1	0.138	14	3.8	card_payment	bank_transfer,online_payment,card_payment	government_services,bill_split,entertainment	none	0.921	0.215	low_burden
Nigeria	2,024	rural	male	52	45-54	second	tertiary	0	7	0	1	0	0.242	0	0	cash	none	none	preference_cash	0	0.729	low_burden
DRC	2,024	urban	female	59	55+	second	secondary	1	4	0	0	0	0.474	0	0	cash	none	none	high_fees	0	0.859	low_burden
Rwanda	2,022	rural	male	45	35-44	fourth	tertiary	1	4	0	0	1	0.106	0	82.01	mobile_money	mobile_money,bank_transfer	transport,groceries	none	0.751	0.604	low_burden
Niger	2,023	rural	female	65	55+	second	none	1	9	0	0	1	0.106	6	30.32	mobile_money	ussd_payment	entertainment,bill_split,groceries,healthcare	none	0.874	0.463	low_burden
Uganda	2,020	rural	female	32	25-34	lowest	primary	1	10	1	1	1	0.118	6	19.38	mobile_money	online_payment	education,healthcare,bill_split,business_to_business	none	0.981	0.258	low_burden
Tanzania	2,025	rural	male	17	15-24	lowest	tertiary	1	10	0	0	1	0.191	4	21.61	online_payment	online_payment,card_payment	entertainment,healthcare	none	0.677	0.363	low_burden
Mali	2,025	urban	male	49	45-54	middle	primary	1	10	1	1	1	0.299	11	34.42	ussd_payment	online_payment	healthcare,utilities,entertainment,education,government_services	none	0.899	0.174	low_burden
DRC	2,025	urban	male	21	15-24	lowest	primary	0	7	1	1	1	0.45	6	17.52	digital_wallet	qr_code,online_payment	utilities,entertainment,transport	none	0.958	0.414	low_burden
Malawi	2,023	urban	male	19	15-24	middle	secondary	0	8	0	0	1	0.495	6	34.24	mobile_money	card_payment	education,utilities,bill_split,government_services	none	0.981	0.542	low_burden
DRC	2,018	rural	male	53	45-54	middle	secondary	0	6	0	0	1	0.107	4	72.36	bank_transfer	mobile_money	online_shopping,business_to_business	none	0.734	0.383	low_burden
DRC	2,020	rural	male	38	35-44	highest	primary	0	8	1	0	1	0.064	1	54.72	mobile_money	bank_transfer,online_payment,card_payment	groceries,utilities,entertainment,education,government_services	none	0.949	0.247	low_burden
Ethiopia	2,021	urban	female	48	45-54	middle	primary	1	2	1	1	0	0.397	0	0	cash	none	none	no_internet	0	0.739	low_burden
Mozambique	2,025	urban	male	56	55+	lowest	primary	0	10	1	1	1	0.381	5	23.81	mobile_money	ussd_payment	healthcare,groceries,online_shopping	none	0.923	0.262	low_burden
Tanzania	2,022	urban	female	36	35-44	second	none	0	10	1	1	1	0.403	9	15.11	ussd_payment	mobile_money,bank_transfer,online_payment	online_shopping,utilities,healthcare,government_services,entertainment	none	0.838	0.28	low_burden
Ghana	2,022	rural	male	48	45-54	fourth	primary	1	10	0	0	1	0.159	5	29.13	mobile_money	digital_wallet,card_payment	healthcare,education	none	0.714	0.333	low_burden
Niger	2,019	rural	female	44	35-44	second	secondary	0	6	0	1	0	0.063	0	0	cash	none	none	merchant_refusal	0	0.858	low_burden
Rwanda	2,024	rural	male	46	45-54	highest	secondary	0	5	0	1	1	0.209	3	41.13	ussd_payment	card_payment,bank_transfer	bill_split,business_to_business,government_services,groceries	none	0.701	0.443	low_burden
Nigeria	2,020	rural	female	53	45-54	middle	primary	1	5	0	0	0	0.059	0	0	cash	none	none	trust_issues	0	0.914	low_burden

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⚠️ Synthetic dataset — Parameterized from published SSA literature, not real observations. Not suitable for empirical analysis or policy inference.

Digital Payments Usage in Africa

Synthetic dataset modeling digital payment adoption and usage patterns across 15 Sub-Saharan African countries from 2018-2025.

Dataset Description

This dataset simulates individual-level digital payment adoption, capturing the transition from cash-based to digital transactions. It reflects the role of mobile money, QR codes, and digital wallets in transforming payment behaviors across the continent.

Key Statistics

Metric	Value
Total Records	15,000
Countries	15
Time Period	2018-2025
Digital Payment Adoption	~35%
Avg Monthly Transactions	4-8 (users)
Avg Transaction Value	$25-60 USD
Cash Usage Ratio	0.55-0.70 (primary)

Coverage by Scenario

low_burden: 4,000 records
moderate_burden: 5,000 records
high_burden: 6,000 records

Column Descriptions

Column	Type	Description
country	string	One of 15 SSA countries
year	int	Year (2018-2025)
urban_rural	string	Urban or rural location
gender	string	Male or female
age	int	Age in years (15-70)
age_group	string	Age bracket
income_quintile	string	Income group (lowest to highest)
education	string	Education level
account_ownership	int	Has financial account (0/1)
digital_literacy	int	Digital literacy score (1-10)
smartphone_ownership	int	Owns smartphone (0/1)
internet_access	int	Has internet access (0/1)
digital_payment_use	int	Uses digital payments (0/1)
merchant_acceptance_rate	float	Local merchant acceptance rate
payment_frequency_monthly	int	Monthly payment transactions
avg_transaction_value_usd	float	Average transaction value
preferred_payment_method	string	Preferred payment method
payment_types_used	string	Comma-separated payment types used
payment_purposes	string	Comma-separated payment purposes
primary_barrier	string	Main barrier to digital payments
payment_success_rate	float	Transaction success rate
cash_usage_ratio	float	Proportion of transactions in cash
scenario	string	Burden scenario label

Usage Example

import pandas as pd

# Load the combined dataset
df = pd.read_csv("digital_payments_combined.csv")

# Analyze payment method preferences
methods = df[df['digital_payment_use'] == 1]['preferred_payment_method'].value_counts()

# Predict digital payment adoption
from sklearn.ensemble import RandomForestClassifier
from sklearn.model_selection import train_test_split

features = ['age', 'digital_literacy', 'smartphone_ownership', 'internet_access', 'urban_rural']
X = pd.get_dummies(df[features], drop_first=True)
y = df['digital_payment_use']

X_train, X_test, y_train, y_test = train_test_split(X, y, test_size=0.2)
model = RandomForestClassifier().fit(X_train, y_train)
print(f"Accuracy: {model.score(X_test, y_test):.2f}")

Research Sources

World Bank Global Findex Database 2025
GSMA State of the Industry Report 2025
McKinsey Digital Payments Report 2024
Central Bank digital payment statistics

Citation

@dataset{digital_payments_africa_2025,
  title={Digital Payments Usage in Africa},
  year={2025},
  note={Synthetic dataset based on World Bank Findex and GSMA data}
}

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