Multipurpose Cash Assistance
Multipurpose Cash (MPC) are unrestricted cash transfers that people affected by crises can use to cover their basic needs. By its nature, MPC is the assistance modality which offers people a maximum degree of choice, flexibility and dignity. There is also growing evidence that it is more cost-efficient and cost-effective to meet multiple needs.
But this requires new ways of collaborating between humanitarian actors, at all stages of the program cycle, and across sectors. While solid tools exist to support collaboration, they have not been widely adopted and MPC is still used in an ad-hoc way. Challenges remain to be addressed if we are to successfully fit MPC into the humanitarian system.
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Multipurpose cash outcome indicators and guidance
Guidelines and Tools
The indicators in this document, developed by the Grand Bargain Cash Workstream, focus on the primary objectives of humanitarian Multipurpose Cash Assistance (MPC), and the outcomes to which MPC can most strongly contribute in a given context.
Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) Decision Making Tools
Guidelines and Tools
Update: This publication was revised in 2022. Please read the revised publication here.
The purpose of this tipsheet is to accompany practitioners and decision makers through key stages in the process of calculating an MEB to: (a)
identify what is the most appropriate path to take in relation to their
particular context, identified objective, existing capacities and available
resources; and...
Operational Guidance and Toolkit for Multipurpose Cash Grants
Guidelines and Tools
This operational guidance and toolkit brings together worldwide expertise on cash-based interventions (CBIs). It provides comprehensive and practical guidance for humanitarian actors to assess the feasibility, conceptualise the design and structure the implementation of MPGs. The guidance focuses on MPGs whose primary objective is to meet basic needs as defined by affected people...
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 /...
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Delivering Cash Through Cards – A Quick Delivery Guide (screen version)
Guidelines and Tools
A Quick Delivery Guide to delivering money through cards (magnetic stripe or smart cards). Prepared as a practical tool, this guide provides a brief synthesis of the necessary preconditions and advantages and disadvantages of using cheques. It also provides practical implementation tips.
The Use of Cash Transfers in Livestock Emergencies and their Incorporation into Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS)
Guidelines and Tools
This paper reviews the use of cash transfers within the livestock sector and suggests how they can be incorporated into and support Livestock Emergency Guidelines and Standards (LEGS). The paper’s structure reflects the stages of the LEGS Handbook as these in turn reflect good project cycle management....
Cheques – A Quick Delivery Guide for Cash Transfer Programming in Emergencies
Guidelines and Tools
A Quick Delivery Guide to delivering money through cheques. Prepared as a practical tool, this guide provides a brief synthesis of the necessary preconditions and advantages and disadvantages of using cheques. It also provides practical implementation tips.
Evaluation of Livelihood Projects in the Post tsunami Recovery Operation in Sri Lanka
Report
Spanish Red Cross has wide experience in livelihoods programming mainly in South America and South Africa over the last twenty years. However the projects that were developed in response to the impact of the Indian Ocean tsunami were the first time that the SRC used cash grants as a modality for its...
Community Recovery Cash Grant: Responding to the shelter, food security and livelihood needs to enable early recovery of earthquake affected people in Sumatra, Indonesia
Case Study
This document gives a technical review of the activities and outstanding issues pertaining to the implementation of Oxfam’s recovery cash grant distribution in response to the 2009 earthquake in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Following the rapid assessment conducted a week after the earthquake, Oxfam has...
Evaluation of Concern’s Post Election Violence Recovery (PEVR) programme
Case Study
Concern’s Post Election Violence Recovery (PEVR) Programme was a cash transfer programme operating in areas of Kenya (Nairobi, Nyanza, and the Rift Valley) affected particularly badly by the violence that followed the announcement of the national election results in late 2007. Building on several other...
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...
Cash Transfers in Emergencies: The Case of Indonesia and Vietnam
Case Study
In October 2009, typhoon Ketsana brought heavy rains over Vietnam causing sudden and heavy flooding, which led to considerable loss of lives, shelters and livelihoods. Around the same time, an earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale struck the island of Sumatra in Indonesia causing massive loss of...
The use of cash and vouchers in humanitarian crises: DG ECHO funding guidelines
Guidelines and Tools
A brief guide to assist programme staff in writing funding proposals for cash-based interventions. A humanitarian guidance note about cash transfer programming is also available.
Case Study: Indonesia – Sumatra 2009
Report
On 30th September 2009 a series of earthquakes struck West Sumatra, not far from the provincial capital of Padang. 13 out of the 19 districts in West Sumatra province were affected. Between earthquakes and landslides nearly 250,000 houses were destroyed or heavily damaged. This case study examines the...