Cash Transfers to Reduce Malnutrition in the DRC

0 yrs

Duration of programme

$ 0 m

The Power of Nutrition contribution (via Sida)

$ 0 m

Partner match

$ 0 m

Total programme size

Programme overview

The Power of Nutrition has partnered with the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida) and expert implementing partners to deliver a multi-year, multi-phased programme that will address malnutrition in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) – one of the world’s most vulnerable and conflict-affected countries.

The first phase began in January 2022 – an innovative, $9m programme led by GiveDirectly. The programme aims to address the immediate and longer-term needs of more than 5,000 vulnerable households in South Kivu, through providing cash transfers to support resilience, food security and improved nutrition outcomes.

THE PROGRAMME AIMS TO ADDRESS THE IMMEDIATE AND LONGER-TERM NEEDS OF MORE THAN 5,000 VULNERABLE HOUSEHOLDS IN SOUTH KIVU

THE PROGRAMME AIMS TO ADDRESS A KEY DRIVER OF MALNUTRITION: FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS TO FOOD SECURITY LEADING TO INADEQUATE ACCESS TO SUFFICIENT, DIVERSE, NUTRITIOUS FOOD.

Programme objectives

  1. Improve food security and dietary diversity for ~5,000 households with pregnant women or children under 5 in South Kivu, DRC
  2. Improve livelihoods, incomes and resilience of ~5,000 households with pregnant women or children under 5 in South Kivu, DRC.

The programme will provide households with pregnant women or children under 5 at risk of food insecurity and malnutrition in South Kivu, with cash transfers. The case transfers will help to enable them to grow and/or purchase diverse diets, as well as invest in their livelihoods to be more financially resilient – with a view to improving immediate and longer-term nutrition outcomes for women and children.

It will address the short and long-term economic barriers to accessing nutritious foods by providing these households with monthly payments of $40 over the course of 24 months to support immediate food security needs, as well as one-time lump sum payments of $410 to invest in longer-term livelihoods interventions.

It aims to address a key driver of malnutrition: financial constraints to food security leading to inadequate access to sufficient, diverse, nutritious food. This will be complemented by the multisectoral, overlapping second phase of the programme (due to launch in 2023), which will support systems strengthening and an enabling environment for improved financial resilience and food security to thrive, maximising positive impacts on maternal and child health and nutrition (for example, by investing in complementary health services and food systems).

How will success be measured?

  • % of recipients who report that the cash transfers helped them to provide a healthier diet to their household
  • % of recipients who report that the cash transfers helped them to feed their household more regularly
  • % of recipients who report an increase in food expenditure due to the cash transfers
  • % of recipients who report that their child under age 5 is consuming more food groups due to the cash transfers
  • % of households reporting that their child ate more times per day due to the cash transfers
  • % of recipients who report investing some part of the cash transfer in income-generating activities (new or expanded businesses)
  • % of recipients who report investing some part of the cash transfer in paying down debts
  • % of recipients indicating that their income has increased as a result of the investments they made in income-generating activities
  • % of recipients who report new or improved household assets as a result of the cash transfer