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Cash transfers amid shocks: A large, one-time, unconditional cash transfer to refugees in Uganda has multidimensional benefits after 19 months

Prankur Gupta, Daniel Stein, Kyla Longman, Heather Lanthorn, Rico Bergmann, Emmanuel Nshakira-Rukundo, Noel Rutto, Christine Kahura, Winfred Kananu, Gabrielle Posner, K.J. Zhao and Penny Davis

World Development, 2024, vol. 173, issue C

Abstract: Refugees in protracted displacement are often limited in their opportunities for income-generating activities and investments, making them dependent on aid for meeting basic needs. In the context of stretched humanitarian aid budgets, it is a necessary policy question to determine ways to increase refugees’ self-reliance. In this study, we combine a randomized controlled trial with extensive longitudinal qualitative data to explore the multidimensional impacts of a large, one-time, unconditional transfer of 1,000 USD to households of predominantly South Sudanese refugees living in protracted displacement in Uganda. Estimated after 19 months, we find that the transfer significantly increased households’ consumption, asset values, business ownership, business revenue, psychological well-being, and self-reliance. We find positive but insignificant effects on food security, migration, employment, or female empowerment. Overall, a large one-time cash transfer given in the context of shocks has multidimensional improvements in refugees’ lives, providing meaningful movement towards self-reliance.

Keywords: Self-reliance; Refugees; Unconditional cash transfers; Mixed-methods; RCT (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H84 I00 I30 I39 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:173:y:2024:i:c:s0305750x23001572

DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2023.106339

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