ReliefWeb

VIENNA, July 2, 2017 – Ground Truth Solutions and the Cash Learning Partnership, announced the launch of the Cash Barometer, a unique and practical informational tool to assist the international community in the delivery of humanitarian aid.

The Cash Barometer monitors how people affected by humanitarian crises – refugees, asylum seekers, or victims of natural disasters – perceive the direct distribution of cash as an alternative to (or used in tandem with) other forms of aid. The Cash Barometer collects and analyses this feedback from multiple locations around the world, encourages dialogue among those in need as well as field staff, and uses the results to help aid agencies and donors fine tune policies and programmes to maximise the potential of humanitarian aid through cash distributions.

Afghanistan was chosen for the trial run of the Cash Barometer, where aid agencies last year successfully implemented cash-based programmes throughout the country and have committed to increasing distributions in 2017. Some 600 participants, most of whom received some sort of cash assistance, were surveyed in Kabul, Nangarhar, and Helmand provinces in May 2017. The survey included those who received other types of aid as well as non-recipients.

The results showed a clear preference for cash in hand to other forms of humanitarian assistance, with women showing a stronger preference for cash compared to men. Almost all respondents expressed a preference for cash transfers to vouchers, citing the flexibility this offers to meet their most important needs. The survey also asked whether the support would allow them to live without aid in the future. People receiving cash were marginally more optimistic. Those receiving greater amounts rated the importance of cash assistance higher relative to other support and income, though they were not yet prepared to live without future aid.

About Ground Truth Solutions

Ground Truth Solutions uses accurate, unbiased information, collected on the ground, in real time, about the perceptions of affected people to guide UN agencies, NGOs, as well as the Red Cross movement to take better decisions and to provide the right support at the right time. By giving a voice to those hit by crisis, aid agencies can use the feedback as a tool to manage and shape projects as they are being rolled-out and maximize their effectiveness; donors can use the information to track how their support directly helps those in need. (http://www.groundtruthsolutions.org)

About Cash Learning Partnership

The Cash Learning Partnership (CaLP) is a global partnership of humanitarian actors engaged in policy, practice and research within cash transfer programming. Formed of a community of practice including over 150 organisations and more than 5,000 individuals in the humanitarian sector, CaLP is based on learning, knowledge sharing, networking, and coordination around the appropriate and timely use of cash distributions in humanitarian response. (http://www.cashlearning.org/)

For more information, please visit: www.cashbarometer.org