Gender Analysis for MVAC Emergency Cash Transfer Programme

Cash Transfers (CTs) provided an effective means of supporting men and women to meet their basic needs in an emergency. CTs assisted men and women to meet their practical needs, giving men a sense of purpose as a provider, and allowing women to fulfil their traditional roles as wife and mother. CTs led to a temporary boost in women and men’s standing within their homes and communities, but have not led to any long-term discernible change in status. Although CTs do not directly lead to women’s ‘empowerment’, they do have important implications for gender dynamics within homes and communities.

In order to study these implications, Concern Worldwide commissioned a gender analysis of Concern’s and GOAL’s emergency cash transfer programmes in Mchinji and Nsanje districts, respectively. The gender analysis sought the perspectives of 218 beneficiaries and key informants (110 women and 108 men) through focus group discussions, interviews, a participatory ‘decision tree’ tool, and a survey, which aimed to explore gendered attitudes in the project context.