Cash

Types of Assistance

Cash & Voucher Assistance

Cash and vouchers are modalities of humanitarian assistance, directly provided to individuals, households and communities to purchase or access goods and services. Providing cash and voucher assistance is not a goal in itself, but an enabler to achieve programmatic objectives. It is cross-sectoral and should be complemented by other modalities where possible. 

Cash and voucher assistance can be conditional or unconditional, restricted (through vouchers) or unrestricted (through cash), and can take many different forms. For example:  

• Shelter construction through conditional household cash grants complemented by technical support 
• Rehabilitation of communal facilities (e.g. roads, markets) through Cash for Work 
• Cash grants to small businesses or individuals to set up or enhance their businesses 
• Multi-purpose cash grants to IDPs or returnees 
• E-vouchers or paper vouchers for specific goods or services, such as food or NFI 

Cash for Work

Cash for Work (CFW) is a modality of cash assistance. In displacement sites, CFW programs can be an effective tool for addressing the immediate needs of vulnerable populations, while also providing opportunities for the communities including longer-term economic and social development, social cohesion and maintenance of living spaces. 

What is Cash for Work? 

Cash for Work (CFW) are cash payments provided to beneficiaries on the condition of undertaking designated activities. This is generally paid according to time worked (e.g. number of days, daily rate), but may also be quantified in terms of outputs (e.g. number of items produced, cubic metres dug). CFW interventions are usually in public or community work programmes but can also include home-based and other forms of work. 

CFW is different from hiring casual workers/labourers for operational support. Individuals participating in CFW activities are beneficiaries of the project, usually from the same community that is benefiting from the works being done. They are selected to perform low skilled routine or manual activities based on the project’s selection criteria, which usually prioritize individuals based on needs and/or vulnerabilities,.  

What is usually not Cash for Work? 

Hiring people for activities and services that are needed by the organization to achieve project outcomes is not usually CFW. For example, work such as guarding an area, conducting surveys, skilled manual labour, distribution of aid items or community outreach are usually contractual work and should not be confused with CFW activities. This is typical of recruitment of daily labourers or community outreach workers who are usually screened against a ToR to be selected based on skills and given a contract for the work. 

Incentive Payments

Not all payments are cash assistance. For example, if camp committee members receive cash as an incentive, then:  

• If this is regular and therefore a remuneration, it is not cash assistance 
• If it is one-off to stimulate or support engagement or based on needs, it may be cash assistance 

Use in Displacement Sites

Cash and voucher assistance might be used as a modality to support individuals, households and communities living in displacement sites. For example, voucher assistance for food or NFIs (instead of distribution), cash for work to maintain communal infrastructure. 

If so, the CCCM actor: 

• Will need to coordinate and monitor cash and voucher assistance services, the same as any other service 
• Might decide to use cash and voucher assistance themselves to achieve objectives specific to site management operations.  

Role of the Cluster

As a CCCM Cluster coordination team you might need to do the following to be able to support the use of cash and voucher assistance by a CCCM actor, or in displacement sites: 

• Familiarise yourself with the basics of cash and voucher assistance programming 
• Familiarise yourself with the factors that influence if and when it is appropriate and feasible to use cash and voucher assistance in a camp or camp-like setting 
• Work with CCCM partners and the Cash Working Group to develop standards or guidance on cash programming if used by multiple CCCM actors, if needed 
• Encourage CCCM partners to share good practices and lessons learned on the use of cash and vouchers across different activities in camps and camp-lie settings. 
• You can consult the Cash Working Group in country (if there is one) for technical support as needed. 

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