Qualitative Research and Analyses of the Economic Impacts of Cash Transfer Programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa
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Qualitative research and analyses of the economic impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa Lesotho Country Case Study Report Qualitative research and analyses of the economic impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa Lesotho Country Case Study Report Oxford Policy Management FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2014 The From Protection to Production (PtoP) project is financed principally by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), with additional support from the European Union. The PtoP project is part of the Transfer Project, a larger joint effort with UNICEF, Save the Children and the University of North Carolina, to support the implementation of impact evaluations of cash transfer programmes in sub- Saharan Africa. The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO. © FAO 2014 FAO encourages the use, reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product. Except where otherwise indicated, material may be copied, downloaded and printed for private study, research and teaching purposes, or for use in non-commercial products or services, provided that appropriate acknowledgement of FAO as the source and copyright holder is given and that FAO’s endorsement of users’ views, products or services is not implied in any way. All requests for translation and adaptation rights, and for resale and other commercial use rights should be made via www.fao.org/contact-us/licence-request or addressed to [email protected]. FAO information products are available on the FAO website (www.fao.org/publications) and can be purchased through [email protected]. Acknowledgments This report was prepared by Andrew Kardan, from OPM, with research support from Sechaba Consultants and Moeketsi Ratikane. The report also benefited from peer review by Jeremy Holland and Simon Brook internally and externally by Pamela Pozarny (FAO) and Terry Roopnaraine. We are grateful to the individuals and organisations in Lesotho who supported our research. Our particular thanks go to Ntate Ramoe, CGP Programme Manager, who supported the research throughout and provided us with contacts in all research sites. Our thanks also go to other colleagues in the Ministry of Social Development who helped us with questions we had and to other stakeholders, including UNICEF and the EU, for their comments during the debriefing presentation. Last but not least, we are grateful to the villagers in our research sites, for their time and patience, which made this research possible. We hope we have managed to represent their views and suggestions adequately in the report. This assessment was conducted by Oxford Policy Management and Sechaba Consultants. The project manager is Simon Brook. The OPM team leader was Andrew Kardan. The national team comprised of Moeketsi Ratikane, Mathabo Liphoto, Limpho, Itumeleng Baidoo, Moshoanae Mofombe, Tsepiso, Leshoboro and Pamela Pozarny (FAO), joined the team during one week of the in-country field research to provide technical support. The contact point for the client is Benjamin Davis, [email protected] Contents Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................... iii Executive Summary ................................................................................................................. 1 Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................... 4 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 5 1.1. Background to the CGP ............................................................................................ 5 1.2. Research objective ..................................................................................................... 9 1.3. Methodology ............................................................................................................. 14 2. District and Community Profiles ................................................................................ 21 2.1. Food Security and livelihoods in Lesotho .............................................................. 21 2.2. Leribe District .......................................................................................................... 27 2.3. Mafeteng District ..................................................................................................... 33 3. Research Findings ........................................................................................................ 38 3.1. Household Economy ................................................................................................ 38 3.2. Local Economy ......................................................................................................... 55 3.3. Social Networks ........................................................................................................ 60 3.4. Operational Issues .................................................................................................... 67 4. Conclusions and Recommendations ........................................................................... 78 4.1. Conclusions ............................................................................................................... 78 4.2. Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 82 Executive summary Background This report presents analysis and findings from a qualitative research case study conducted in April and May 2013 in Lesotho, the fourth of a six-country study of the economic impact of cash transfer programmes in Sub Saharan Africa. The Child Grants Programme (CGP) is an unconditional cash transfer programme targeting poor and vulnerable households in Lesotho and is run by the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) with financial support from the European Commission and technical support from UNICEF-Lesotho. It began in April 2009 and provides a regular transfer of M3601 (USD 36) every quarter to poor households with children. The households are selected through a combination of a Proxy Means Test (PMT) and community validation. Research areas and key findings The research study examined the impact of the cash transfer in three interrelated areas: household economy, local economy and social networks. Household economy impacts: Household economic impacts: the CGP is mainly used as a safety net and, more specifically, for households’ food requirements and children’s educational needs. Beneficiary households were able to buy larger quantities of more varied food and better quality food. Beneficiaries were also able to consume more protein, particularly around payment dates. The transfer also covered the costs of schooling for children in beneficiary households, particularly school uniforms, school trips and, in some cases, examination fees and fees for pre-school education. The transfer had little impact on beneficiaries’ livelihoods strategies: they continued to do what they were doing before. This was because the transfer amount was small, meant for a specific purpose and did not come very frequently. Some beneficiaries did, however, reduce the amount of piecework/casual labour they undertook, but only marginally and only around pay dates. There was some indication that in some instances remittances – an important source of livelihood in Lesotho – were being reduced during the payment month. For others, however, this remained unchanged. Some beneficiaries were afraid of telling their non-resident family members and relatives that they were receiving the transfer for fear of having their remittance cut or reduced. Local economy impacts: The CGP contributes to the local economy in villages through increased consumption rather than increased production. Most of the beneficiaries’ income was spent locally, although this was moderated by context, depending on factors such as proximity to larger towns, payment size and payment location. The CGP payment was made in larger lump sums on a couple of occasions due to missed payment dates. During these times households were more likely to purchase more of their needs from the main towns since the proportional cost of transport was 1 As of April 2013 the payment has been indexed to the size of family as follows: 1-2 household members (M360), 3-4 members (M600) and 5 & above members (M750) per quarter. 1 reduced significantly. Beneficiaries, nevertheless, always purchased a proportion of their (more immediate) needs from within their local communities, often because they were able to buy items on credit. Shopkeepers noted increased