Per this article, only 20% of people in Bangladesh have traditional bank accounts. Yet 33 percent of Bangladeshi men have used mobile money. Mobile money has replaced the bank account.
Are there legitimate needs for a cellphone in their life?
Do you have legitimate needs for a cellphone in your life? For a wallet, credit and debit cards?
Mobile money transfers are used in place of card processing, for loans and gifts. SMS and mobile money transfers have replaced cash remittances or money transfer services from cities to rural areas. You can't access these services without a cell phone.
Lastly, how in the world is a phone going to get them out of poverty? I can understand if it was like a suit, where it gives a person a better position to obtain a job. However, I would think that a library would be better suited to get them out of the position where they're at.
A cellular phone will help someone learn a fair price for their crop, good, or service, and allow them to contact buyers. This will do more for their income than a suit. But access to cell phones and mobile money doesn't just benefit people by increasing income. Giving women the ability to make purchases has listed benefits in the article:
"Women spend money differently from men. They tend to invest more in the health and well-being of their families — as much as 10 times more. They give priority to spending on health care, nutritious food and education. A child born in a household where the mother controls the family budget is 20 percent more likely to survive — and much more likely to thrive."