ICT and Financial Inclusion in the Brazilian Amazon

Abstract

The challenge of providing the infrastructure of public services in the less developed regions of Brazil has mobilized the Brazilian government in the quest for new and creative approaches that can reduce the major interregional disparities in the country. One of the initiatives implemented include access to the financial system, since, by way of example, such access is almost non-existent on Marajó Island in the state of Pará in the Brazilian Amazon. To change this reality, an innovative e-government project is the itinerant bank branch installed in a boat, named Agência Barco, to serve the riverine populations of regions with low population density, transportation difficulties and limitations in access to information and communication technology (ICT). Thus, the main objective of this research is to identify how the financial inclusion indicators have been influenced by the work of Agência Barco on Marajó Island from the ICT standpoint. The results obtained led to the conclusion that Agência Barco has been able to attend the needs of access to financial products and services demanded by the population of Marajó Island, as well as identify opportunities for broadening financial education and inclusion through this e-government venture.