The role of local promoters in helping microentrepreneurs engage in digital business training. The case of Expertienda

The challenge for policymakers is providing good quality business training services that can reach vast numbers of firms while not expensive. This paper examines the marginal impact of implementing a free smartphone-based business training called Expertienda for Colombian microentrepreneurs. Using teams of local university students and a randomised control trial design, we invited microentrepreneurs to install the application in 2021 and follow up with them at least three times. The sample consisted of 1,013 microentrepreneurs in 10 Colombian cities, for whom we collected administrative records on the application usage and observational and survey data one year after the implementation. We show that for every 100 incentivized businesses, 4 installed and used the app. Moreover, there is no evidence of spillovers at the local level regarding take-up. Regarding business performance, results show no evidence that the course affected financial inclusion, formalisation, or business practices indexes.

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