The nature of humanitarian crises is changing. More people are in need and for longer. Humanitarian assistance could be more effective, more efficient and more transparent if aid was given in the form of cash directly to people struggling to survive in crises, says Overseas Development Institute on its website.
But while aid organisations are starting to give more cash and vouchers, they account for only about 6% of humanitarian aid, given out by a variety of competing agencies.
This report, written by the High Level Panel on Humanitarian Cash Transfers, identifies 12 crucial steps to scaling up cash transfer programmes, including capitalising on digital technology and private sector expertise and opening up programmes to greater competition.
The report also outlines how making cash central to emergency response planning is also an opportunity for broader reform of the humanitarian system. It charts the next steps for donors, governments and humanitarian agencies to make these changes a reality.
The 12 Recommendations of the High Level Panel on Cash Transfers
A. More cash transfers
1. Give more unconditional cash transfers. The questions should always be asked: ‘why not cash?’ and ‘if not now, when?’.
2. Invest in readiness for cash transfers in contingency planning and preparedness.
B. More efficient cash transfers, delivered through stronger, locally-accountable systems
3. Measure how much aid is provided as cash transfers and explicitly distinguish this from vouchers and in-kind aid.
4. Systematically analyse and benchmark other humanitarian responses against cash transfers.
5. Leverage cash transfers to link humanitarian assistance to longer-term development and social protection systems.
6. Capitalise on the private sector’s expertise in delivering payments.
7. Where possible, deliver cash digitally and in a manner that furthers financial inclusion.
8. Improve aid agencies’ data security, privacy systems and compliance with financial regulations.
9. Improve coordination of cash transfers within the existing system.
10. Implement cash programmes that are large-scale, coherent and unconditional, allowing for economies of scale, competition and avoiding duplication.
C. Different funding to transform the existing system and open up new opportunities
11. Wherever possible, make humanitarian cash transfers central to humanitarian crisis response as a primary component of Strategic Response Plans, complemented by in-kind assistance if necessary.
12. Finance the delivery of humanitarian cash transfers separately from assessment, targeting and monitoring.
Download rapporten Doing cash differently – How cash transfers can transform the humanitarian aid (PDF, 44 sider)
