September 16, 2019
The war in Yemen is an ongoing disaster for its people. Over 80% of the population currently requires humanitarian or protection assistance, making it the worst such crisis in the world, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. With two thirds of all districts experiencing pre-famine conditions, and 20 million people food-insecure, the question of how best to deliver food assistance is paramount. A Sept. 5 IFPRI seminar explored the findings and implications of an IFPRI impact evaluation of Yemen’s Cash for Nutrition program, which provides cash transfers in combination with nutrition education for recipients.
“Conflict is now a major driver of food insecurity globally, and we're interested in the impacts of cash transfers in conflict situations in particular, because it's becoming an increasingly popular mode of humanitarian aid delivery,” said IFPRI Associate Research Fellow Sikandra Kurdi, one of the authors.
The evaluation reviewed the outcomes of a treatment group that received cash transfers, including food consumption and dietary diversity. It found that a large share of cash transfers were used for increased household food purchases. The treatment group, Kurdi explained, consumed more milk, eggs, fruits, and vegetables than control households. Thus, the combination of cash transfers with nutritional education has positive impacts on key measures of child and maternal nutrition. [..] Click here to access the full blog.
