This article examines Financial Inclusion and Mobile Banking in East Africa: M-Pesa, Equity Bank, and Beyond: Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic with a focused emphasis on Nigeria within the field of African Studies. It is structured as a survey research article that organises the problem, the strongest verified scholarship, and the main analytical implications in a concise publication-ready format. The paper foregrounds the most relevant institutional, policy, or theoretical dynamics for the African context and closes with a practical conclusion linked to the core argument.