The Determinants of Accessibility of Financial Services in Vietnam

The study aims to assess the impact of factors on the access to financial services by Vietnamese farmers. The number of respondents in this study is 402 household heads participating in six diverse agricultural value chains in Vietnam. The explanatory variables of the Multinomial Logit model estimates variables at the individual characteristics while the Mixed Logit model can combine the two types of variables together to estimate the effects simultaneously. On the other hand, the Ordinal Logit model is used to evaluate the determinants of the increase in the quantity of financial services used by individuals. The estimation results show that male-headed households have more access to financial services than females. Younger farmers are more likely to use formal financial services than the elderly. Financial literacy, land ownership, and shocks in agricultural production all have a positive impact on the probability of dealing with banks. In addition, the degree of linkage and credibility of the value chain have a significant positive impact on the accessibility of financial services to farmers. The findings of this study suggest that limiting gender inequality, focusing on youth marketing and developing agricultural value chains will have a positive impact on farmers' access to financial services.