What do Youth Savers Want? Results from Market Research in Four Countries

“What youth want ” was the question the YouthSave project set out to answer through four market studies involving almost 2500 (primarily youth) respondents in Colombia, Ghana, Kenya, and Nepal. The research shows that, contrary to widespread adult perceptions, it is common for youth to obtain and manage money from at least the age of 12. Furthermore, the majority of youth respondents reported that they are already saving money on their own—albeit in small amounts, over short time horizons, and through informal mechanisms. 

This paper is s meant to provide those interested in designing youth savings accounts with a set of plausible hypotheses to prove, refine, or disprove for their particular populations of interest—a head start in designing market research to understand the savings needs of youth.