Transforming Households With Refraction and Innovative Financial Technology

The aim of the proposed Randomised Clinical Trial (RCT) is to assess the impact of presbyopia correction and basic digital financial training on greater adoption and use of digital financial services (primary outcome) and other welfare impacts (secondary outcomes)) for safety-net beneficiaries in Bangladesh. Trial participants will be Old Age Allowance (OAA) and Widows Allowance (WA) beneficiaries who regularly receive payments as part of a government safety net program for the very poor. The primary objective of the THRIFT trial is to assess whether the combined complementary intervention of providing free eyeglasses and basic digital financial services training in the use of mobile phones to recipients of government OAA and WA safety-net payments can lead to greater financial inclusion and improved quality of life. THRIFT's primary outcome is the adoption and effective use of the DFS platform in receiving digital OAA and WA transfers using the mobile banking platform, as measured by the difference between the treatment and control groups. The secondary outcomes analysed under the THRIFT trial will be: total data consumption, independent use of the mobile banking application, purchase of eyeglasses (for control group members), access to medication and healthcare, subjective well-being, mobility, social connectedness, percentage of household consumption, reasons for using or avoiding smartphone based DFS, and decision-making power within the household.