Assessing the Impact and Lessons from Cash Plus Interventions in Humanitarian Contexts in Mozambique

In 2023, Save the Children became the first NGO in Mozambique to launch multiple Cash Plus pilot projects. Cash Plus initiatives combine household cash transfers with complementary interventions to address the various drivers of childhood deprivation and maximise outcomes for children. Save the Children implemented these projects to support children’s education and nutrition in Cabo Delgado province, and to aid recovery in Zambézia province after tropical cyclone Freddy struck in early 2023. The pilots aimed to verify the effectiveness of Cash Plus approaches and their potential for scaling up in humanitarian crises.

The three Save the Children pilots in 2023 in Mozambique add to the evidence base on the effectiveness of Cash Plus interventions. These evaluations have shown that cash is not only a feasible response modality but also the preferred modality for recipients. The intention is to encourage other actors, including the government, to adopt or scale Cash Plus interventions in their programming and integrate them into existing social protection schemes. In 2024 and beyond, Save the Children will continue to prioritise the expansion of our Cash Plus interventions tailored to address identified child risks, both in terms of scale and reach, but also broadening the sectoral complementary interventions beyond education and nutrition. Save the Children will also continue to document learning and publish evidence on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of Cash Plus to advocate more strongly across the sector.