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Cash and Voucher Assistance for Education in Emergencies: Synthesis Report and Guidelines [EN/AR]

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World
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Education Cluster
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1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 Justification and background of the study

The use of Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) within humanitarian contexts has increased significantly over the past years, with latest figures estimating up to $2.8 billion in 2016, representing a 100 per cent increase since 2014. Within the education in emergencies (EiE) sector however, the use of CVA has been limited, mainly due to lack of understanding of current practices and how they apply to the sector. CVA is typically led by cash experts within humanitarian organisations and social protection branches of governments, and education practitioners often have limited influence over its initiation, planning and design.

In light of the Grand Bargain cash commitment to develop an evidence base for assessing costs, benefits, impacts and risks of CVA, the Global Education Cluster (GEC), with a financial contribution from DG-ECHO and technical support from NORCAP has set out to build evidence around CVA for EiE. The GEC was ideally placed to host this project due to its wide network of organisations, including those who pioneered the use of CVA in a variety of EiE contexts. Additionally, the GEC’s direct linkages with country-level Education Clusters facilitated the identification of on-going projects and contact with experienced CVA and EiE practitioners. Similarly, the strong network of CashCap / NORCAP experts facilitated data collection.

The research project endeavoured to answer three main questions:

1 When is CVA the best modality to deliver EiE projects, and when is a combination of modalities preferable?

2 How are education-related costs calculated to be included in the Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB), depending on the context?

3 What elements need to be taken into account when calculating the education-related component of Multipurpose Cash Transfers (MPC) intended to meet basic needs?

The research focused on current CVA practices for achieving EiE outcomes, and where possible, on the impact of different forms of CVA on EiE outcomes. It is hoped that through a better understanding of these practices, using CVA for EiE will be more systematically considered and scaled, where appropriate.

The Study’s primary audience are education practitioners, be they education cluster coordinators or EiE programme staff.