Is the informal economy in Sub-Saharan Africa organized? And if so, how? however – they are multipurpose in nature. To illustrate this fact, we have developed the typology of» opportunity – se­curity – empowerment – identity« as an organizing structure to categorize the objectives of the different groups. In this typology: –»Opportunity« refers to the potential for improving the economic situation of a group member. –» Security« stands for the quest for social security and protection. –» Empowerment« encapsulates the desire to obtain voice and representation vis-à-vis the state and/or a powerful private sector. While the type of service is closely related to the typology above, the aspect»shared identity« does not appear in Figure 7, but can be subsumed under»others«. The survey revealed that: – 45.5 per cent of all respondents sought services to gen­erate or expand economic opportunities; this included financial services(33.6 per cent) and other economic or business support services(11.9 per cent); – over one-third(38.2 per cent) joined a group in a quest for social services, that is, to enhance social security; – very few respondents(3.7 per cent) cited societal em­powerment as the primary reason to join a group; –» Identity« means the pursuit of a collective cultural, religious or ethnic distinctiveness. – a relatively large share(12.6 per cent) reported having joined the group for»other reasons«. Table 7.3 shows that almost all types of groups fall under more than one of these categories. The cells shaded in dark-grey indicate the group’s primary function; those in light-grey show the secondary function. 7.3.2 Motives for joining a group Actors in the informal economy may join a group because they expect benefits, such as the provision of essential ser­vices, which may be of a financial, material or intangible nature. Respondents can choose from a list of services, as shown in Figure 7.7. There are considerable variations between the six countries, which depend to a large extent on the type of groups that predominate. For example, in Benin and Kenya, the two countries in which savings clubs predominate, a majority of respondents joined a group in quest of financial services. The share of»other reasons« is particularly high in Zambia and Senegal and corresponds to the prominence of religious groups. We can therefore assume that these»other reasons« are mainly of a religious or cultural nature, meaning that respondents wanted to strengthen their shared identity. In fact, the survey found that two features, namely ethnic origin and faith/religion, were the most important factors determining shared identity in all six countries. Figure 7.7 Reasons for joining a group 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% Social services 38.2% Financial servces 33.6% Others(mostly identity/religious) 12.6% Economic/business/professional services 11.9% Societal/political functions 3.7% Senegal Zambia Kenya Benin Côte d'Ivoire Ethiopia 6-country average 65