USAID
16 January 2020
Contributions
Understanding how Cash and Voucher Assistance Programs for Nutrition are Implemented: A review of programmatic case examples from Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Somalia, and Colombia
Report
The purpose of this review was to identify and document case examples of programs in different countries and contexts that use cash, vouchers, or in-kind food assistance with nutrition activities to understand why and how these programs are implemented, and identify innovations that may inform and support the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance subsector programming of USAID’s Bureau for...
December 2023
Working with Financial Service Providers to Provide Emergency Cash Assistance
Guidelines and Tools
This report, prepared and published as part of VenEsperanza’s research and learning agenda, presents lessons learned and best practices related to the collaboration between humanitarian actors and financial service providers (FSPs) in delivering multi-purpose cash assistance in emergency contexts. Using VenEsperanza as a case study, this report documents and explores the important role FSPs...
23 October 2023
Operational Alignment of Humanitarian Cash Programming with Ukraine’s Social Protection System
Report
This paper explores the extent to which humanitarian Multipurpose Cash Assistance (MPCA) in Ukraine has been able to leverage different elements of the delivery chain of national social protection (SP) programming. The basis of this paper is the framework developed by Seyfert et al., in their 2019 paper Unbundled: A Framework for Connecting Safety Nets and Humanitarian Assistance in Refugee...
September 2023
Building Capital in Crisis: How women in CARE’s VSLAs in Emergencies increase savings and solidarity
Report
Since 2017, CARE has piloted and refined our VSLA in Emergencies model to reach people in need of humanitarian assistance and provide an approach that can reduce long term vulnerability while being more sustainable. In this second report on our pilot research, we provide insights from three pilots in Yemen, Syria, and Jordan. This includes the end of pilot findings from Syria and Jordan as...
14 August 2023
Alignment Options for Humanitarian Cash with the Ukrainian Social Protection System
Report
Cash assistance, and multi-purpose cash assistance (MPCA) specifically, are a vital part of the humanitarian response in Ukraine. Over half of the projects listed in the 2023 Humanitarian Response Plan have a cash transfer or voucher component. By June 2023, approximately 8 million people received multi-purpose cash assistance from 50 organizations (Ground Truth Solutions, 2023). Cash-based...
August 2023
Cash and Voucher Assistance to Improve Maternal and Child Nutrition Outcomes in Emergency Contexts of Nigeria
Case Study
In Nigeria, nearly 12 per cent of children under 5 years are wasted according to the National Food Consumption and Micronutrient Survey (2021). Wasting is largely concentrated in the North with 58 per cent of all cases residing there. In the Northeast and Northwest regions of Nigeria, the prevalence of wasting is 17 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively. In 2023, it was projected that nearly...
July 2023
“Aid is Inadequate because No One Consults us.” Perceptions of humanitarian aid in Chad
Report
Chad is a diverse and dynamic place. It is the fifth-largest country in Africa and is rich in gold, uranium, and oil. The country is home to a mixture of languages, ethnicities, and religions, creating a vibrant mosaic. However, it is also marked by protracted humanitarian, economic, and climate crises. At the time of this report’s publication, 6.9 million people need humanitarian...
June 2023
Economic Drivers of Displacement in Yemen
Case Study
As Yemen enters its eighth year of conflict, the country faces interconnected social and economic crises, severely limiting the government’s ability to sustain vital public services and a stable employment market. Additionally, Yemenis’ purchasing power has dramatically reduced due to exchange rate volatility and increased global prices, driving many into food insecurity. Yemen’s...
7 May 2023
Understanding the Impact of a Humanitarian Cash Transfer (HCT) Program in Colombia
Case Study
The Venezuelan humanitarian crisis represents one of the largest displacement crises in the world, on the order of 6.1 million people (UNHCR 2022a). Colombia currently hosts more than 1.82 million Venezuelans, 60 percent of whom are in irregular situations that prevent them from accessing public services, putting a strain on the Government of Colombia’s (GOC’s) capacity to deliver...
May 2023
Layering Cash into Market Systems Programs: Catalyzing market-driven recovery in Nigeria
Case Study
This paper examines the case of the Nigeria Rural Resilience Activity (RRA), a five-year, US$49 million Activity funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Feed the Future portfolio within the states of Borno, Adamawa, Yobe and Gombe (BAY-G) in North Eastern Nigeria (NEN) and implemented by a consortium led by Mercy Corps, in partnership with Save the Children...
May 2023
Meeting immediate needs and protecting development gains: Lessons from Ethiopia’s drought response
Case Study
From April to October 2022, Mercy Corps’ Resilience in Pastoral Areas, North (RIPA-North) program provided a humanitarian drought response in the Somali Region of Ethiopia funded by the activation of a crisis modifier. This drought response was designed to complement and build on the Market Systems Development (MSD) approach which focuses on enhancing resilient, sustainable economic...
December 2022
Evidence of impact research study: Cash and voucher assistance in Niger
Case Study
While in-kind assistance constitutes the bulk of humanitarian aid globally, Cash and voucher assistance (CVA) is quickly gaining ground among donors and practitioners. Between 2014 and 2020, the share of CVA-based support within the overall humanitarian assistance portfolio) increased 4.5 times — from 5% to 20% of the overall aid distributed. Samuel Hall conducted a study to identify key...
November 2022
Links and bridging mechanisms between cash assistance and livelihoods development/restoration programming. A review of evidence and learning from the VenEsperanza consortium
Case Study
As part of VenEsperanza’s research and learning agenda, this report provides guidance on links and bridging mechanisms between cash assistance and livelihoods development/restoration programming using the VenEsperanza Consortium as a supporting case study. This research adds to a growing body of evidence demonstrating the promise and potential for bridging cash and livelihoods programming....
30 September 2022
Savings Groups in Emergencies Training Slide Deck
Guidelines and Tools
This Training Slide deck provides actionable guidance to organizations to promote or work with Savings Groups in emergency settings. We know that Savings Groups work – and that they are powerful. But, in emergencies, we must revisit some of our approaches and assumptions. Integrating Savings Groups into more humanitarian programming – and doing it better – holds significant potential to...
19 September 2022
Savings Groups in Emergencies Learning Brief
Guidelines and Tools
We know that savings groups work – and that they are powerful. But, in emergencies, we must revisit some of our approaches and assumptions. Integrating savings groups into more humanitarian programming – and doing it better – holds significant potential to improve the outcomes of humanitarian aid. In 2021, 8 organizations – committed to improving and understanding this process – came...
19 September 2022
“Case Management Integrated with Cash Transfers is one of the Best Responses we can Use”
Case Study
With support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC), CARE, and the Corporación de Profesionales para el Desarrollo Integral Comunitario [Corporation of Professionals for Comprehensive Community Development – CORPRODINCO] partnered to deliver gender-based violence (GBV) case management to...
June 2022
Paving Pathways to Self-Reliance in Iraq: Exploring Referral Pathways from Cash to Livelihoods Assistance to increase program participants’ resilience in conflict-affected areas of Iraq
Report
This piece of research was commissioned to explore and identify best practices for referral pathways from MPCA to livelihoods assistance for programme participants, and subsequently to generate recommendations for programme implementers and donors. The research focused on the operational models used by CLCI partners NRC and DRC in the past for referring socio-economically vulnerable households...
February 2022
Assessment of Financial Service Providers – Cash and Voucher Assistance in Uganda
Case Study
Under the Uganda Refugee Response Plan (RRP) 2018-2022, both international partners and local government place a strong emphasis on shifting the response paradigm “from care and maintenance to inclusion and self-reliance.” In pursuit of this objective, cash-based interventions are marked as a modality of priority with partners committing to expand and widen the transformation of in-kind...
November 2021
Market-Based Programming in WASH: Technical Guidance for Practitioners
Webinar recording
This webinar was co-hosted by the Global WASH Cluster, PRO-WASH, Oxfam, the German WASH Network and the CALP Network in September 2021. Over recent years, humanitarian aid organizations have increasingly used market-based programming (MBP) to deliver water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in emergencies. ‘Market-based modalities’ include the distribution of cash and vouchers, which enable...
8 September 2021
Modality Decision Tool: Nutrition Addendum
Guidelines and Tools
The Modality Decision Tool (MDT): Nutrition Addendum aids implementing partners to apply a nutrition lens to the selection of appropriate food assistance modalities (cash, vouchers or in-kind) for the nutritionally vulnerable. This addendum is primarily oriented to USAID/BHA’s “supplemental nutrition sub-sector” under their emergency activity guidance, but will also be applicable to...
14 April 2021
Evidence building for cash and markets for WASH in emergencies
Webinar recording
This webinar was co-hosted by the Global WASH Cluster, Pro-WASH and the CALP Network in December 2020. The webinar presented findings from a systematic review (“Evidence building for cash and markets for WASH in emergencies”) conducted by the Global WASH Cluster (GWC), which examined how WASH actors in humanitarian settings have used market and cash modalities to deliver essential WASH...
8 December 2020
Introduction to Market based Programming in Emergency Wash
Guidelines and Tools
In May-June 2020, PRO-WASH, the Global WASH Cluster and the CALP Network co-organised a webinar series on Introduction to Market-Based Programming (MBP) in Emergency WASH. Recordings and Powerpoint presentations from this series are available on the FSN Network in English, Spanish, French and Arabic. The objective of this introductory webinar series was to provide an overview of core...
22 July 2020
Multi-Purpose Cash Transfer ‘Plus’: Maximizing impact on children through integrated cash-based programming
Report
In 2018, with the support of OFDA and FFP, Save the Children implemented a multi-purpose cash transfer ‘Plus’ program in response to the influx of Venezuelan into Colombia. The program aimed at covering vulnerable household’s basic needs and prevent them from resorting to negative coping strategies, notably affecting the protection and nutritional status of children. In addition to the...
19 October 2019
Cost-Efficiency Analysis of Basic Needs Programs: Best Practice Guidance for Humanitarian Agencies
Guidelines and Tools
The Efficiency, Effectiveness and Value for Money Sub-Workstream is pleased to share the final output on Cost-Efficiency Analysis of Basic Needs Programs: Best Practice Guidance for Humanitarian Agencies (attached).
Cost-efficiency analysis estimates the ratio of program costs to outputs created, allowing you to compare cost-per-output for programs which all produced the same output. Such...
October 2019
Safer Cash Toolkit (English)
Guidelines and Tools
The Safer Cash Toolkit, funded by USAID, is designed to capture the minimum amount of protection-related information in emergency settings to ensure that organizations can make informed decisions on how to design, implement and adjust CVA programs at the field level to prevent and minimize harm.
The Safer Cash Toolkit is a set of three tools and additional guidance to:
1) Generate awareness...
2019
Mobile Cash Transfer for Pilot for PSNP clients, in Ethiopia
Report
The study aimed to understand mobile cash transfer effectiveness and satisfaction level of PSNP clients during the three rounds (January to March) e-payment in 2018 in Amhara Region, Ethiopia, East Africa.
September 2018
ASPIRES Family Care Process Assessment: Savings Groups for Family-Child Reintegration and Prevention of Separation
Report
The ASPIRES project aims to advance household economic strengthening (ES) programs for vulnerable populations. ASPIRES offers technical assistance to scale up high-quality interventions in the areas of consumption support, money management, and income promotion. The project also supports rigorous research to evaluate programs and inform a new understanding of best practices in ES. A subproject...
July 2018
Cost Efficiency and Cost Effectiveness in Humanitarian Assistance Workshop Report
Report
A report of the Cost Efficiency and Cost Effectiveness workshop held on 9-10 April and organized by USAID, IRC and the CALP Network. The recommendations of the workshop was fed into the Grand Bargain cash workstream.
June 2018
Market Information Framework
Guidelines and Tools
The Market Information Framework aims to clearly spell out the most common questions related to humanitarian programming for which market information is needed and to indicate what types of market-related data are needed to answer each of these questions. It explains why various types of market information are relevant and points users towards specific tools that will help them to gather each...
May 2018
Risk Assessment and Mitigation Requirements for High-Risk Environments
Guidelines and Tools
This document is an annex to the USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) Proposal Guidelines that provides supplemental requirements for proposals for programs in high-risk operating environments. USAID/OFDA recognizes that certain operating environments present a heightened risk of waste, fraud, abuse, and diversion due to the presence of groups and individuals...
May 2018
Can limited-term cash transfers confer (lasting) child protection benefits?
Presentation
The USAID-funded Aspires project, implemented by FHI360, ChildFund International and AVSI, developed evidence and programming guidance on how economic interventions can facilitate the reintegration of separated children into families, and also prevent unnecessary separation of children from their families.
2018
Definition of Minimum Expenditure Baskets (MEB) in West Africa
Report
Throughout 2017, five countries in West Africa have worked collectively to define minimum expenditure baskets, in order to better capture the contribution that humanitarian assistance is making to address the basic needs of affected populations, and improve the impact of assistance. This heavy process raises technical and coordination challenges. The CALP Network, with support from USAID /...
2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Sierra Leone Case Study Report
Report
Sierra Leone represents a remarkable experiment in market-based emergency programming using unconditional cash transfers and some conditional cash transfers Sierra Leone reflects the challenges of providing food assistance in the wake of a major infectious disease epidemic. Food insecurity increased due to severely restricted movement in affected communities. The epidemic created fear,...
2018
Implementation Toolkit: Cash and Voucher Programming
Guidelines and Tools
This set of tools developed by PCI seeks to harmonize language and approaches for use by teams involved in the design and implementation of cash transfer programs and is not intended to be a complete guide for design and implementation. The tool box focuses on the crucial steps within the program cycle of cash and voucher programs in order to help country offices develop their own systems and...
2018
Taking Market Analysis Beyond Theory: Practices that Facilitate the Use of Market Information in Humanitarian Programming
Guidelines and Tools
Although strong examples of emergency programming that considers and responds to local market dynamics are out there, they are relatively few in number, and there is no consolidated review of these programs to inform good practice. Under the Improving the Uptake of Market Analysis project, a USAID/OFDA-funded effort that IRC conducted in partnership with Mercy Corps and CRS, the IRC reviewed...
2018
Market-based Food Assistance in Guatemala: A Systematization of Experiences
Guidelines and Tools
In April 2017, at the request of the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Food for Peace (FFP) in Guatemala, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Project Concern International (PCI) designed a process to gather and synthesize the experiences of food assistance implementers in Guatemala. The main purpose of this systematization was to draw out a simple...
2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Zimbabwe Case Study Report
Report
Zimbabwe reflects the recent Southern African drought crisis during a period of a regional El Niño-related drought and a national cash crisis. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Food for Peace (FFP) funded a mix of programming between fiscal years 2011 and 2015, including local and regional purchase of food and, to a lesser extent, cash transfers. With a...
January 2018
Market Support Interventions in Humanitarian Contexts – a Tip Sheet
Guidelines and Tools
This tip sheet defines what market support programming in humanitarian contexts is, and what it can look like in practice. It enables humanitarian practitioners to systematically consider market support interventions alongside other programme activities. The scope includes support interventions focusing on supply/availability and on demand/access. The tip sheet is based on secondary data...
2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Haiti Case-Study Report
Report
Haiti is a very low-income country with a degraded ecological setting that faces repeated threats from multiple hazards. It is an excellent example of Food for Peace (FFP) linking emergency and development funding through the Kore Lavi Title II program that serves as a model for the national social protection program. FFP effectively provides multiple and blended food assistance modalities as...
January 2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Jordan/Turkey Case Study Report
Report
Syria regional crisis: The response to the Syria regional crisis exemplifies the challenges and opportunities involved with delivering food assistance in a widespread, largely urban refugee and internally displaced persons (IDP) crisis affecting middle-income countries. This case study focuses on operations managed from two of the six countries supported by the FFP Syria response, Jordan and...
January 2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs Global Report
Report
Efficient and effective use of humanitarian funds is critical to meet the emergency needs of as many people as possible, especially as emergencies in developing countries have become more numerous, complex, and protracted. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Office of Food for Peace (FFP) is the largest donor providing funds for emergency food assistance. Since 2010,...
2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Nigeria Case Study Report
Case Study
Nigeria is an example of food assistance in a conflict situation in the Sahelian context. The response used information technology to deliver one of the more sophisticated applications of voucher programs. This case is a good example of proactive implementing partner (IP) mechanisms and monitoring systems to help detect and prevent fraud in a highly insecure context. It also demonstrates how...
January 2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Democratic Republic of Congo Case Study Report
Report
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) case illustrates the complexity and diversity of contexts within which program design and implementation occurs. It highlights the need for provincial-scale assessments, local market monitoring, and flexibility to pivot to different modalities depending on changing contexts such as influxes of refugees from neighboring countries; sporadic inter-tribal...
January 2018
Evaluation Brief: Experience and Learning from Pilots of Good Practices in Humanitarian Market Analysis
Guidelines and Tools
As part of the “Improving the Uptake of Humanitarian Market Analysis” project, the IRC, CRS and Mercy Corps teamed up to pilot practices that were thought to help humanitarian teams better understand and use market information in programming. In Niger and Nigeria, IRC and CRS teams explored how incorporating non-price indicators into market monitoring could provide a more comprehensive...
2018
Review of Food for Peace Market-Based Emergency Food Assistance Programs: Kenya Case Study Report
Report
Kenya represents a country focused on building resilience through greater partnerships between USAID-Food for Peace (FFP) programs, other USAID-funded programs and local and national government. DESIGN: FFP MBEP in Kenya is a good example of connecting emergency and development programming and of government participation at national and county levels. It shows adaptations to varied conditions...
January 2018
Assessing the effects of a combined economic and social intervention in Uganda on child protection and economic outcomes
Presentation
Presentation showing preliminary findings from USAID-funded Aspires Family Care Project, implemented by FHI360, ChildFund International and AVSI. Economic strengthening activities including cash transfers, VSLAs, matched savings accounts and others were shown to reduce families’ economic vulnerability and increase child protection and well being.
2018
More Phones, More Transfers? A case study from Save the Children’s Emergency Food Security Program using Mobile Money in Bari, Nugaal, & Hiran Regions of Somalia
Report
In 2016-2017, with funding from USAID/FFP, Save the Children implemented a project targeting over 10,000HH the Bari, Nugaal, and Hiran regions of Somalia with monthly cash transfers using Mobile Money a partnership with Golis and Hormuud. The project sought to improve the food security situation in the targeted households. Save the Children wanted to understand to what extent the project...
November 2017
Harnessing Digital Technology for Cash Transfer Programming in the Ebola Response. Lessons Learned from USAID/Office of Food for Peace Partners’ West Africa Ebola Responses (2015–2016)
Report
Globally, the adoption of digital technology has grown alongside the increase in cash transfer programming (CTP), often through the use of e-transfers, in part because of the potential gains in accountability, efficiency (cost and time) and effectiveness. The 2015 High Level Panel on Cash Transfers recommended delivering cash digitally where possible. However, evidence from...
September 2017
Organizational Cash Readiness Assessment: Project Concern International and Relief International Case Study
Case Study
The CALP Network partnered in 2016 with two organizations, Relief International (RI) and Project Concern International (PCI), to support them through a six-month process to strengthen their organizational readiness to deliver cash or voucher programming, using CALP’s Organizational Capacity Assessment Tool (OCAT). During this OCAT process, an organization assesses its current readiness to...
July 2017
Cash or in-kind? Why not both? Response Analysis Lessons from Multimodal Programming
Report
This research reviews lessons learned about response analysis from multimodal responses, that is, responses in which practitioners determined that more than one response modality between cash,vouchers, and in-kind, was a “best fit” or in which the conclusions about “best fit” changed over the course of the project. The research hypothesizes that comparing the reasons for choosing...
2017
Improving the Uptake of Humanitarian Market Analysis
Guidelines and Tools
Market assessments and market-based programming are now widely considered best practice in humanitarian programming, especially among food security and livelihoods actors. They are embedded in various standard-bearing initiatives, and there are a number of tools for emergency market analysis and monitoring aimed at non-specialist practitioners, including the well-known Emergency Market Mapping...
2017
A Review of Inter-Agency Collaboration for CTP Delivery
Report
Recent global initiatives have reaffirmed the potential for Cash-Transfer Programmes (CTP) to effectively and efficiently meet a wide range of disaster-affected populations’ needs while preserving dignity and choice. Although much work has been done in advocating for the benefits of CTP and enhancing its use in humanitarian action, relatively less research has explored the means through...
2017
Northeast Nigeria joint livelihoods and market recovery assessment
Report
Mercy Corps Nigeria, in conjunction with Action Against Hunger, Cooperazione Internazionale, Catholic Relief Services, the International Rescue Committee and Oxfam undertook the assessment across the three most affected states in Northeast Nigeria; Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, to better understand post-insurgency livelihood and market recovery strategies and identify opportunities for future...
2017
Rapid Market Assessment Sofala Province, Mozambique
Report
The joint TDY between USAID/FFP and FEWS NET Mozambique to Sofala Province, Mozambique had two distinct objectives:
1) Assess current food security and market conditions including:
a) Scale of humanitarian assistance relative to needs
b) Understand maize market structure, conduct and performance
c) Evaluate seasonal progress in terms of production and rainfall
2) Routine monitoring of FFP...
2017
Digital Cash Transfers in Liberia. A case study from Save the Children’s Emergency Food Security Program (2015- 2016)
Report
Through its USAID-funded Emergency Food Security Program, Save the Children was the first organization to implement cash transfers through mobile money at scale in Liberia, where mobile money services are nascent. From liquidity management to incentivizing agents, the challenges, lessons, and opportunities are documented in this study conducted by Strategic Impact Advisors, LLC.
2017
Cash Tranfers for Food Security in Epidemics. A Review of the USAID Food for Peace Response to the Ebola Crisis in Liberia and Sierra Leone
Case Study
Over the course of 2015 and 2016, the United States Agency for International Development/Food for Peace (USAID/FFP)-funded cash transfer programming (CTP) in Liberia and Sierra Leone reached over 500,000 crisis-affected people with a vital lifeline to tackle food insecurity. Monitoring data indicates that 75 percent of the money given through unconditional cash transfers (UCT) was spent on...
2017
International Cash based assistance
Report
For more than 60 years, the United States provided assistance to food-insecure countries primarily in the form of food commodities procured in the United States and transported overseas. In recent years, the U.S.government has increasingly provided food assistance in the form of cash transfers or food vouchers. In fiscal years 2010 through 2015, USAID funding for Emergency Food Security...
2016
Cash/Food. A Comparative analysis of the effectiveness of food assistance modalities in refugee settlements
Report
A comparative analysis of the effectiveness of food and cash assistance modalities for household food security in refugee settlements
2016
ELAN Mobile Money Workshop Report
Report
The Electronic Cash Transfer Learning Action Network (ELAN) hosted two mobile money workshops in January 2016 in Dakar (Senegal) and in Gisenyi (Rwanda). The workshops were attended by 52 individuals from seven countries across West Africa and the Great Lakes region representing 16 humanitarian agencies (HAs) and 11 private sector service providers (SPs). The events were guided by...
2016
Cash or Food A Comparative analysis of the effectiveness of food assistance modalities in refugee settlements
Report
A comparative analysis on the effective of food and cash transfer modalities for household food security in refugee settlements in Uganda.
2016
Revised Pre-Crisis Market Analysis (PCMA)
Guidelines and Tools
The purpose of this guidance is to provide field practitioners, across the different sectors, with a practical step-by-step process of how to plan, carry out, and update pre-crisis market mapping and analysis, leading to response/programme design and implementation as well as surveillance, early warning system (EWS), and monitoring and evaluation (M&E). Market analysis used in pre-crisis...
2016
Mobile Money Transfers – For Humanitarian Assistance & Development Programming: Service Provider Perspective
Report
This report summarizes findings from research on how digital payment services providers in Africa have worked with Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) customers to deliver digital payments to their program participants/beneficiaries in the context of providing humanitarian assistance and/or for development programming. The overall aim is to to understand supply side perspectives on use of...
2016
Afghanistan Emergency Response Mechanism (ERM)
Report
The Afghanistan Emergency Response Mechanism (ERM) was selected as a case study to illustrate the ‘alliance’ form of inter-agency collaboration for sector-focused cash assistance, with semi-formal relationships and separate funding flows between members. It is distinctive from other cases in that cash assistance is, for the vast majority of beneficiaries, provided by members on a one-off...
2016
Working with Cash-based Safety Nets in Humanitarian Contexts: Guidance Note for Humanitarian Practitioners
Guidelines and Tools
Over the past decade, social protection has emerged as an important social policy measure to tackle poverty and inequality in society, and to address vulnerability to shocks. In line with these developments, there has been increasing interest in forging better links between humanitarian assistance and social protection systems in order to reduce the need for recurrent humanitarian assistance,...
2016
Mobile money assessment and contracting guide
Guidelines and Tools
Mobile money offers tremendous potential to enable cash transfers at scale and connect program participants to financial services. Oftentimes, however, humanitarian practitioners struggle to understand mobile money terminology to confidently evaluate different mobile money operators and to design contracts that lay the foundation for successful programs. Furthermore, the majority of...
2016
Gender and Markets in West Africa – Secondary Data Review
Report
The secondary information and data review presented here covers all gender and markets assessments conducted by WFP in West Africa, and market assessments conducted by key partners in the region over the past 5 years. The quality of the compiled assessments is reviewed to identify data and information gaps and target areas for improvement. Information needs of WFP programmes and modalities...
2016
What to know: working with humanitarians on e-cash programs
Report
International humanitarian assistance rose to a record US$24.5 billion in 2014. The 2015 Global Humanitarian Assistance Report indicated that over US$200 million of this was used in cash and voucher programs. An increasing number of humanitarian actors have begun to deliver cash electronically, through mechanisms such as mobile money, mobile banking, prepaid debit cards or electronic...
2016
Gender impact assessment of cash transfers support to vulnerable households in Sierra Leone
Report
This report outlines the findings and recommendations from a qualitative assessment carried out to complement and further develop the findings from a recently concluded quantitative study of SNAP+ in order to better understand the driving factors behind behavior during the Ebola crises. The quantitative study, completed in July 2016, assessed how program participants spent the funds...
2016
Karamoja, Uganda: Enhanced Market Analysis
Report
The Market Fundamentals reports serves as starting points for providing efficient and effective market-based response decision support for both emergency and development programs in Karamoja Region of Uganda. It examines the appropriateness and feasibility of modality response options for the region.
2016
Digital Finance for Development: A Handbook for USAID Staff
Guidelines and Tools
This handbook is designed to enable USAID personnel to maximize the Agency’s use of and contribution to the growth of digital financial services in emerging markets around the world. As an Agency, USAID brings significant comparative advantages to the collective effort required to build out financial services and market infrastructure that serve the poor and create pathways out of...
12 April 2015
Mobile Financial Services in Bangladesh
Report
This report is the consolidation of findings derived from desk research and face-to-face interviews with key mobile financial services providers, telecom operators, technology platform providers, regulators, and USAID health and agriculture project staff and beneficiaries.
The objective of this report is two-fold: The first is to better understand the progress the mobile financial services...
April 2015
Report from the Inaugural Markets and WaSH Learning Event
Report
This report summarizes the presentations and discussions that took place during a learning event on market-based programming targeting key humanitarian stakeholders in the WaSH sector. Held on October 13, 2015 at the IFRC office in Nairobi, the event was organized under the umbrella of the Markets in Crises (MiC) Community of Practice and was the result of a cooperative effort between ACF, the...
2015
MARKit: Price monitoring, analysis and response kit
Guidelines and Tools
The Price Monitoring, Analysis and Response Kit (MARKit) was developed by representatives from the Local Regional Procurement (LRP) Learning Alliance to guide food assistance practitioners through the steps to monitor markets during the implementation of food assistance programs, and to ensure that programs remain responsive to changing market conditions. This manual is intended to guide users...
2015
Feasibility of cash transfer modalities in refugee settlements
Report
The main objective of this market assessment was to determine market functionality and the feasibility of cash transfer modality (and use of mobile money) among refugee settlements (Kyangwali, Kyaka II, Rwamwanja and Koboko) proposed for the cash transfer scale up in 2016. Survey households were randomly selected from a zone list obtained from the refugee settlement, while traders were...
2015
Final Report for Assessment of the Impact of Cash For Work Beneficiaries training for Phases IIB and IV
Report
Phases IIB and IV of the Cash For Work (CFW) project were implemented by FAO Somalia over the period 2013-2015 and aimed at enhancing access to food by the food insecure households in the short-term, while supporting restoration of food production through the rehabilitation/construction of productive assets and rural infrastructure (water catchments, roads, river embankments and secondary...
2015
Enhancing Food Security and Nutrition during the First 1000 Days through Gender-sensitive Social and Behavioural Change: A Technical Resource Guide
Guidelines and Tools
This technical resource guide is designed to build the capacity of development practitioners working in nutrition and food security to plan, implement, and evaluate gender-sensitive SBC programming in order to improve nutritional outcomes for pregnant and lactating women (PLW) and children under two. It does this by providing an overview, rationale, critical actions, best practices, resources,...
2015
Cash, Care, Prevention and Adherence for Adolescents: Latest evidence from southern Africa
Presentation
This presentation looks at cash, care, prevention and adherence for adolescents using the National Longitudinal study of Adolescents in Southern Africa.
2015
Social Protection Programmes Contribute to HIV Prevention
Policy paper
Social protection programmes reduce poverty and vulnerability while strengthening a broad range of developmental impacts. This brief describes the pathways through which social protection – especially cash transfers – contributes to HIV prevention, particularly in addressing the social, economic and structural drivers of HIV in adolescents. This brief is important for policymakers and...
2015
State of the Use of Mobile Technologies for Disaster Preparedness in South East Asia
Report
This report summarizes the study conducted by Nanyang Technology University (NTU) in collaboration with the Global Disaster Preparedness Center with support from the USAID-Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance to better understand how new communication and information sharing technologies can enhance risk reduction and preparedness measures. Unlike post-disaster response and recovery, where...
2015
Cash Transfer Programming in the ASALs of Kenya
Case Study
The CALP Network commissioned a study to document the impact and lessons learned from its engagement with state actors in the ASAL counties. The study involved collection of data through secondary and primary sources. Given the focus of the project, a qualitative approach was deemed as most appropriate in capturing the changes in attitudes and practice in such a short period of...
2015
Cash Learning Partnership
Guidelines and Tools
The CALP Network aims to ensure that, by the end of 2015, timely humanitarian response will routinely consider appropriate and accountable
cash transfer programmes at scale.
2015
Integrating Gender throughout a Project’s Life cycle 2.0: A Guidance Document for International Development Organisations and Practitioners
Guidelines and Tools
The overarching premise of this document is that to conduct effective, responsible development work, incorporating gender at all stages of a project’s life cycle – from project design and proposal development to field implementation and monitoring, evaluation and learning – is critical. As such, this document provides guidance on how development practitioners can ensure that gender is...
2015
Mobile Money Bulk Payment Products: Capturing the market opportunity of global development organizations
Presentation
International relief and development organizations (DOs) receive significant aid funding from donors, which they regularly disburse in high volume, low value payments to millions of recipients for program and operational expenses. DOs and donors are increasingly using and promoting the use of new digital payment technologies in their work, including the use of mobile money payments. NetHope...
2015
USAID Procurement Executive’s Bulletin 2014-06
Policy paper
This Bulletin applies to USAID’s Acquisition Workforce consisting of Contracting Officers (COs), Agreement Officers (AOs), Negotiators, CO/AO Representatives (CORs/AORs), and Activity Managers worldwide. The purpose of this bulletin is to provide guidance to the Acquisition Workforce on promoting electronic payments under contracts, grants and cooperative agreements. This PEB replaces PEB...
June 2014
Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? – Executive Summary
Report
This summary presents the results of a 2013 research study entitled, Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? The research was commissioned by the the CALP Network and undertaken by the Humanitarian Futures Programme (HFP), King’s College London. The project intends to understand how changes in the broader global and humanitarian landscape may evolve in the future (up to...
2014
A Double-edged Sword: Livelihoods in emergencies guidance and tools for improved programming
Guidelines and Tools
This document aims to help economic development practitioners who design economic strengthening projects with the particular aim of improving child wellbeing and for others whose aim is poverty alleviation more broadly. The guidance presented is based on the understanding that: 1. Household economic welfare and child wellbeing are correlated (Campbell et al., 2010; Akwara et al., 2010); 2....
2014
Regional Learning Event: “Links between emergency cash transfer programming and social safety nets in the Sahel.” – Final report
Report
Cash transfers are nowadays widely used in response to the food and nutrition crises that affect the Sahel. Since the crisis of 2012, many stakeholders (including governments, United Nations agencies, international or local non-governmental organisations) have made use of them – at scale, in some cases. Aside from emergency situations, cash transfers are increasingly being considered by...
2014
Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? – Final Report
Report
This report presents the results of a 2013 research study entitled, Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? The research was commissioned by the the CALP Network and undertaken by the Humanitarian Futures Programme (HFP), King’s College London. The project intends to understand how changes in the broader global and humanitarian landscape may evolve in the future (up to...
2014
Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? – Annexes
Report
This Annex Package contains the full set of products developed in the course of a 2013 research study entitled, Is Cash Transfer Programming ‘Fit for the Future’? The research was commissioned by the Cash Learning Partnership (the CALP Network) and undertaken by the Humanitarian Futures Programme (HFP), King’s College London. The project intends to understand how changes in the...
2014
Making the Journey from Cash to Electronic Payments: A toolkit for USAID implementing partners and development organizations
Guidelines and Tools
This Toolkit was created for non-governmental relief and development organizations to guide them in their journey of transitioning from using cash payments to electronic payments in all operational and program payment streams. It is intended to be practical, easy to follow, bite-size, sectional, with guidance on sequencing (ie. some sections are linear while others may be concurrent).
2014
E-Transfers: One Year Later Workshop Learning Document
Report
In the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Typhoon Yolanda), an estimated half million storm-affected Filipinos received an electronic cash transfer (e-transfer) to help them rebuild and recover from the storm’s devastation. The presence of a large number of Financial Service Providers (FSPs) with the requisite infrastructure was critical to enabling a cash response...
2014
Information and communications technology response to the Liberia ebola crisis
Report
An information and communication technology assessment recently conducted in Liberia by NetHope and USAID addresses the potential for digital payments in the response to Ebola. The documents looks into the digital payments landscape, describing the banking sector, use of mobile money and remittance firms. It also presents the regulatory environment and identifies payment disruption risk...
2014
The CALP Network Level 2 Training – Module 2 – When to use cash transfers?
Guidelines and Tools
The objective of the Level 2 training is to strengthen the capacity of humanitarian actors in cash transfer programme design and implementation, to share recent research and learning, and encourage advocacy, institutionalisation and coordination in cash transfer programming (CTP). This training follows the project cycle and addresses the challenges and tools to be put in place at each step of...
2014
The CALP Network Level 2 Training – Module 1 – An Introduction to CTP
Guidelines and Tools
The objective of the Level 2 training is to strengthen the capacity of humanitarian actors in cash transfer programme design and implementation, to share recent research and learning, and encourage advocacy, institutionalisation and coordination in cash transfer programming (CTP). This training follows the project cycle and addresses the challenges and tools to be put in place at each step of...
2014
The CALP Network Level 2 Training – Module 3 – Selecting, designing and implementing CTPs
Guidelines and Tools
The objective of the Level 2 training is to strengthen the capacity of humanitarian actors in cash transfer programme design and implementation, to share recent research and learning, and encourage advocacy, institutionalisation and coordination in cash transfer programming (CTP). This training follows the project cycle and addresses the challenges and tools to be put in place at each step of...
2014
Scoping study – Emergency cash transfer programming in the WaSH and shelter sectors
Report
Over the past few years, the dialogue on cash transfer programming has progressed beyond initial debates about whether distributing cash and vouchers is a valid response modality at all to a general acceptance of their added value in appropriate contexts. Beyond the livelihoods and food security sectors, cash transfer programming is increasingly being considered as a response to...
2014
Using Ona and Open Data Kit to Build Mobile-based EMMA Market Assessment Questionnaires
Report
Purpose of this document
• To build a mobile data collection system to improve the speed and quality of market assessment data collection and analysis.
• To provide field assessment teams with ready-to-use guidance on developing and/or adapting market questionnaires without the need for in-person technical support. Pre-built questionnaires can be used as is, or
adapted using this document...
2014
Children and Economic Strengthening Programmes Maximising Benefits and Minimising Harm
Guidelines and Tools
This guide is designed for practitioners designing or implementing economic strengthening (ES) programs in low-income settings that are sensitive to the protection needs and well-being of vulnerable children. The guide provides an overview of key learning about how ES can achieve better outcomes and impacts for children aged 0-18, both within and outside of household care, whether the direct...
2013
Minimum Requirements for Market Analysis in Emergencies
Presentation
The ‘Minimum requirements for market analysis in emergencies’ report was presented in East Africa, West Africa and Washington DC in July 2013. This link shows the presentation that was used at the launch events. This resource is available for the community of practice for their use. Participants at the event in East Africa were asked to provide feedback about the report and a video was...
2013
Nepal USAID-BEST Analysis
Report
During the months of July-August 2013, the Bellmon Estimation Studies for Title II (USAID-BEST) team undertook a study of the current state of agricultural markets in Nepal to inform USAID food assistance programming decisions. This USAID-BEST Analysis provides an overview of local markets, food security programs, recommendations for program design, and the adequacy of ports, transport,...
2013
Standards and Practices Report for Electronic and Mobile Payments
Report
The benefits of new electronic and mobile payment methods in support of USAID objectives to better serve the unbanked have been well-documented in other literature, 2 and that case will not be reiterated in this report. A practical strategy for evaluating an individual program or Mission environment for suitability of payment type, however, has not yet been proposed or considered in a...
2012
USAID Guidelines for Proposal
Report
USAID’s Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (USAID/OFDA) has revised its Guidelines for Proposals in accordance with updated USAID requirements and the changing global humanitarian context in 2012. These Guidelines apply to new awards as well as to modifications of existing awards. The document has a specific section regarding cash transfers. USAID/OFDA is a proponent of cash-based...
2012
A Practical Guide to Cash-Based Response
Guidelines and Tools
A Practical Guide to Cash-based Responses is a manual developed by Adeso to share the organisation’s experience in developing and implementing appropriate cash-based responses. The manual highlights some practical problems that are faced by implementation teams around the world and it is intended to assist cash project teams to improve their own programs and deal with field issues. The...
2012
Electronic Payment Systems 201
Guidelines and Tools
Disruptive innovation in the payments sector—and indeed the retail financial services industry—does not occur frequently. This is partly due to the dominant position of the incumbent players (primarily banks and payment networks), and partly due to the nature of the sector itself: as they relate to people’s money, banking and payments are not only
inherently conservative, individuals...
2011
Emergency Livelihood Recovery Intervention (ELRI): Fafi District – Garissa County – North Eastern Kenya
Report
The Emergency Livelihood Recovery Intervention (ELRI) was implemented by Horn Relief with funding from OFDA. The Emergency Livelihood Recovery Intervention (ELRI) took place between January 2010 and April 2011; it was designed to address the immediate food security needs of the drought-stricken population of Fafi District in North Eastern Kenya. The goal of the project was to reduce the...
2011
Cash & voucher lessons learned workshop OFDA/ DG ECHO
Report
An overview of discussions of the Cash & voucher lessons learned workshop OFDA/ DG ECHO – Niamey 09 &10 Dec 2010.
13 December 2010
Guidelines for cash interventions in Somalia
Guidelines and Tools
These guidelines are intended for all agencies operating in Somalia to represent a common approach to cash transfer programming for food security and livelihood activities in Somalia. The guidelines outline the minimum acceptable standards for cash interventions and provide the justification for recommending certain types of programming depending on the target groups and the season.
2010
A Guide to Economic Growth in Post-Conflict Countries
Guidelines and Tools
This Guide to Economic Growth in Post-Conflict Countries seeks to develop comprehensive recommendations for USAID and similar donors on how to encourage economic growth in countries emerging from conflict. The Guide is based on the premise that improved economic wellbeing can enhance the prospects for sustaining peace and reduce the high percentage of post-conflict countries that return to...
2009
Case Study of the Poultry and Grape/Raisin subsectors in Afghanistan: Guided case study in value chain development for conflict-affected environments
Report
Is the value chain approach effective for restoring market-based economic activity in a severely affected post-conflict environment?. The goal of this study is to gather empirical evidence to answer this question, looking at the role of the value chain approach in the work of USAID’s Rebuilding Agricultural Markets Program (RAMP) and Accelerating Sustainable Agriculture Program (ASAP)...
2008
Value Chain Tools for Market Integrated Relief Haiti’s Construction Sector
Report
This case study seeks to apply and document the use of the value chain approach to channel infrastructure program design from direct implementation to a market-integrated relief model. The market-integrated relief approach addresses the needs of crisis-affected populations by working through local markets, rather than crowding them out, to deliver needed aid and to leverage opportunities to...
2008
A Synthesis of Practical Lessons from Value Chain Projects in Conflict Affected Environments
Report
Over the last year, at the behest of USAID, 10 organizations captured results and lessons learned from projects that used value chain programming in conflict-affected environments. The goal of this paper is to extract larger lessons that emerge from these implementing organizations and the programs they developed across 14 value chains in conflict-affected environments. Based on these lessons,...
2008
A Market Analysis and Decision Tree Tool for Response Analysis: Cash, Local Purchase and/or Imported Food Aid?
Report
This document provides the Decision Tree Tool, which is to be used for the analysis of response options in a food insecurity context – cash, local purchase or imported food aid (see MIFRA paper). The framework is kept simple for ease of communication with a sequence of specific questions divided into 2 core questions: “Are local markets functioning well?” and “Is there sufficient food...
May 2007
Evaluation of OFDA Cash for Relief Intervention in Ethiopia: Final Report
Report
As a result of insufficient rainfall in 2002 and 2003, the Ethiopian Disaster Prevention and Preparedness Commission (DPPC) issued an international appeal for food assistance in December 2003. Some 7.2 million people were estimated to be at risk in 2004. An OFDA/DART’s response to this crisis resulted in more than $31.9 million in support of humanitarian assistance in FY 2003 and a...
2004
