IT Infrastructure Role in the Success of a Banking System: The Case of Limited Broadband Access

Abstract

This study provides empirical support for including IT infrastructure (ITI) as part of the information systems (IS) success model. The IS success model has been validated in high-income countries, but research in low-income countries is still lacking. This research bridges this gab by identifying ITI as a contributing construct when evaluating the IS success model in the context of low-income countries. This paper investigates the research question: when considering low-income countries, what is the role of ITI in information systems success? The research is motivated by limited ITI and limited Internet access in low-income countries that hinder the success of information systems. We conducted a survey with 102 bank employees in a low-income country – Ethiopia. The SEM-PLS analysis showed strong impact of ITI on user, user satisfaction, and net benefit. This study recommends inclusion of the ITI construct when evaluating the success of information systems and the policies that govern it.

Keywords:

• IT infrastructure (ITI)
• IS success model
• low-income countries
• broadband
• Internet access
• IT connectivity

Acknowledgements

The authors strongly thank Commercial Bank of Ethiopia and Bank of Abyssinia for their cooperation and support in the data collection process.

Notes on contributors

Berhanu is a Ph.D. candidate in the Information Systems Track of the IT PhD Program at Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia. His Ph.D. thesis is on Social Networks and Information Privacy in Low-Income Countries working under the supervision of Prof. France Belanger of Virginia Tech, USA. He works also on research topics such as business intelligence and information security. He is member of AIS Ethiopia chapter and currently serving as Director of the Ethiopian Chapter of the Association for Information Systems.

Dr. Solomon is Associate Professor of Information Systems at Kennesaw State University. He is a member of professional associations including AIS, ACM, SAIS, and ISDSA. His publications appeared on a number of journals. Mobile applications, e-Learning and ICT for economic development are some of his research areas. He has also served as editor-in-chief of African Journal of Information System. Solomon is awarded distinguished graduate service award in 2010 from Graduate College of Kennesaw State University.