Algorithmic Bias and Gendered Surveillance in Digital Financial Inclusion Across the Global South

African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 9, September 2026 | pp. 1–14

DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001295

Article Type: Research Article

Title: Algorithmic Bias and Gendered Surveillance in Digital Financial Inclusion Across the Global South

Names of Author: Dr. Priya Nair¹ & Dr. Olumide Adeyemi²

Author's Affiliation: ¹Centre for Internet and Society, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India; ²Department of Computer Science and Digital Humanities, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.

Abstract:
Fintech platforms and mobile micro-lending applications are increasingly promoted as transformative tools for empowering unbanked women across Africa and South Asia. While digital financial services expand access to credit without requiring traditional physical collateral, proprietary credit-scoring algorithms frequently rely on invasive behavioral data that reproduce structural gender biases. Women who share mobile devices with male relatives or engage in irregular informal-sector cash flows are routinely penalized with higher interest rates or automated loan rejections. This paper examines the intersection of algorithmic governance, financial surveillance, and gender equity in India and Nigeria. Drawing on feminist science and technology studies, the research combines an audit of mobile lending interfaces with qualitative interviews involving 60 female micro-entrepreneurs. The findings demonstrate that without transparent regulatory oversight and gender-responsive algorithmic design, digital finance risks entrenching predatory debt cycles and undermining women’s economic self-determination.

Keywords: Algorithmic bias, digital financial inclusion, fintech, feminist technology studies, gender surveillance, micro-lending, India, Nigeria

Manuscript Timeline: Received: June 12, 2026; Revised: July 20, 2026; Accepted: July 24, 2026; Published: September 15, 2026.

Citation: Nair, P., & Adeyemi, O. (2026). Algorithmic Bias and Gendered Surveillance in Digital Financial Inclusion Across the Global South. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(9), 1–14. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001295

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