Determinants of Financial Literacy Gender Gap in Zimbabwe

This research reports on the findings from a study which was conducted to explore the determinants of financial literacy gender gap in Mashonaland Central Province, Bindura. Therefore, the researcher sought to measure the financial literacy levels of women and men in Zimbabwe in a bid to reveal the factors affecting the gender gap. Women play a pivotal role in economic development and constitute the majority (55%) of the population (ZIMSTATS, 2012). A quantitative research method was used where data was collected among a randomly selected sample of 385 adults in Bindura, using a self-administered questionnaire. Data was analysed using Chi-square tests generated from SPSS version 20 and a financial knowledge index constructed using Microsoft Excel. Findings of the research revealed that age, marital status, education, occupation, income and socialisation explained the financial literacy gap. The study recommended instituting financial education programs targeting women especially those who have lower education, lower income levels, old aged, and unemployed, divorced and widowed to reduce the gender gap.