Coordination
Background
Effective coordination can prevent gaps and overlaps in humanitarian responses, ensure the impact of CVA is optimised for the benefit of crisis affected populations, whilst also making the most of limited humanitarian funding. But the CALP Network’s State of the World’s Cash report found that cash coordination is seen as weak and ad hoc, and that this is having serious operational impact.
Ninety-five donors, international and national NGOs, private sector actors and one UN agency have called for clarity on two key issues surrounding cash coordination:
- Who should be accountable for ensuring effective cash coordination, and
- What the scope of Cash Working Groups should be, including in relation to multipurpose cash.
We urgently need to build on what works and provide clarity at the global level on the questions above, whilst adapting to different contexts. Clear decisions based on the impact on affected populations rather than agency politics are long overdue.
Current priorities
We aim to contribute to progress on this issue on three levels: supporting Cash Working Groups at the regional level; contributing to practical solutions for cash coordination at the global level; and convening evidence-based discussion on the key issues, highlighting critical decision points and opportunities for progress.
Featured content
Cash Coordination – LIVE timeline
Page
The latest updates on cash coordination as they unfold.
95 Organisations Sign Letter Calling for Strengthened Cash Coordination
News
Today a letter signed by 95 organisations was handed into the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) urging the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) to take a decision on the leadership and scope of cash coordination in the coming year.
Is cash transforming the humanitarian system or is the system limiting how cash is used?
Blog Post
At the State of World’s Cash 2020 launch event, Sorcha O’Callaghan, Director of Humanitarian Policy Group at ODI warned that, “Cash offers a huge transformative potential, but as far as the system is privileging the interest of the agencies over people in crisis, we won’t be able to see it”. If you missed the State of the World's Cash 2020 launch we're sharing highlights. Quote 4...
State of the World’s Cash 2020 Chapter 5 summary: Coordination
Report
There has been very limited progress on cash coordination since 2017. Cash continues to challenge the established coordination and funding architecture, and efforts to resolve outstanding questions around cash coordination have failed. Despite the lack of global agreement, Cash Working Groups are pushing forward and contributing to improved programming, and generating new approaches. This...
Cash Coordination Tip Sheet
Guidelines and Tools
This tip sheet sets out established best practice, key guidance and resources for all aspects of cash coordination, intended as a clear, accessible and action-oriented guide for those engaged in coordination of cash and voucher assistance (CVA) at the field level.
Introducing the Cash Coordination Tip Sheet
Webinar
The CALP Network has developed a tipsheet setting out established best practice and key guidance and resources for all aspects of cash coordination, intended as a clear, accessible and action-oriented guide for those engaged in coordination of cash and voucher assistance at the field level.
Cash Coordination: A proposal from members in MENA
Blog Post
Earlier this year the CALP Network undertook regional consultations to explore options for cash coordination. This blog lays out recommendations from participants from the Middle East and North Africa who sketched out what cash coordination, and coordination more broadly, could look like in future to support a more effective, efficient and accountable response.
Thematic lead
Latest
Recommendations on Cash for Protection for General Protection Actors
Report
The aim of this document is to offer recommendations on the use of Cash for Protection interventions in Ukraine, including to create a common understanding among humanitarian partners, and to harmonize practices. This includes: ● Defining Cash for Protection & its objectives ● Scenarios for possible...
Rethinking vulnerability, fairness, and CVA targeting – what if we let people decide?
Blog Post
While it is common practice to ask people affected by crisis whether they prefer cash assistance, in-kind, or another aid modality, people are rarely consulted when it comes to aid duration, coverage, or transfer value. This blog argues that engaging with affected communities on these issues could allow...
Guidance Note on the Cash and Voucher Assistance Coordination and Reporting
Guidelines and Tools
The objective of this guidance note is: (1) Inform about the CBI TWG about the MPCA and its coordination; (2) Inform about reporting tools for MPCA and sectoral cash activities.
The Humanitarian Transfer Platform raises the level of daily service to include the distribution of more than 100 thousand humanitarian assistance per day, benefiting more than half a million Yemenis
Report
In early August, the level of access to the Humanitarian Transfer Platform, a platform for the management of humanitarian action and the distribution of conditional and unconditional cash assistance and in-kind assistance, was increased to 100 thousand assistance per day with a value exceeding 4 billion...
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...
Acting Before Disaster Strikes: The impacts of anticipatory cash transfers on climate resilience in Northeast Nigeria
Case Study
IRC’s research – the first experimental evidence from a randomized controlled trial (RCT) on how anticipatory cash compares to post-shock cash transfers in a conflict-affected environment – highlights that anticipatory action is critical to meeting the short- and longer-term needs of households...
Locally-Led Responses to Cash and Voucher Assistance in the Middle East and North Africa: Barriers, progress and opportunities
Case Study
This research highlights moments of tension between the reported commitment of the humanitarian sector towards localization and the actual steps implemented to advance locally-led CVA. Subsequently, recommendations emphasize the responsibilities of the sector in order to expand locally-led approaches in...
Impact Evaluation of Cash-Based Transfers and Gender in Kenya: Inception report
Guidelines and Tools
Gender inequality in economic autonomy is pervasive, particularly in developing countries, and its potential welfare implications are concerning. The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report for 2022 ranks Kenya as 57th for the Gender Gap on Economic participation, and an opportunity index...
Onward Bound: Evaluating Cash and Voucher Assistance for Migrants on Sahel’s Migration Trail – Research and learnings from the Sahel region
Report
This research – a collaboration between the British Red Cross and Samuel Hall – provides evidence on the opportunities and challenges to integrate cash and vouchers assistance (CVA) as a support modality in migration programming in the context of transit migration in the Sahel. While CVA has become...
Open Partner Survey for Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) in Response to a Crisis
Report
The open partner survey for cash and voucher assistance (CVA) in response to a crisis is a collaborative effort between REDLAC and the Regional Cash Working Group (R4V), with technical support from CashCap/NORCAP and the participation of multiple organizations. This report provides an analysis of the...