GRAND’ANSE RELIEF AND RECOVERY PROGRAM (GRRP)

MOBILE MONEY TRANSFERS

The Why? • The situation of food insecurity in the Grand’Anse department of Haiti

concerned for both local government and international institutions

• (a) passage of Hurricane Tomas, from November 4 to 6, 2010, caused severe damage to the agricultural sector in Grand’Anse, with a loss of approximately 25,469 ha of crops, or 32% of total loss in Haiti;

• (b) onset of the cholera epidemic in the department, with a total of 14,741 recorded cases, caused shifts in expenditures from food to medicine and burials, population flight to the cities, and a decrease in available human capital due to illness/death, reducing planting and harvest capacities; and

• (c) a dry season, lasting one and half months longer than normal, hampering timely agricultural production from the first 2011 harvest.

The Who? • The total number of households targeted

for the food voucher intervention is approximately 6,995 households based on a 6-member family (41,970 direct beneficiaries).

• This represents approximately 25% of the population in each of the targeted communes, which are estimated to be food insecure.

• Beneficiary selection Included criteria to identify households deemed to be poor or very poor and thus at high risk of food insecurity.

• Poor– Own less than .32 hectares of land– 1-2 midsized animals (i.e.: goats or pigs)

• Very Poor– Mainly sharecroppers or manual

laborers with no other income sources; No land and no livestock

• Vulnerability Criteria

– Orphans and/or internally displaced persons

– Child head of household – People living with HIV – Widows– Pregnant and lactating women – Adult members who are unable to

engage in sustained livelihood activities due to age, disability, or illness (including cholera)

The Where?

• 1/3 peri-urban with mobile reception (i.e. Jeremie)

• 2,700 beneficicaries

Context of the e-voucher

1. Program participant phones are NOT required: participant phones are not necessarily used in the transaction process

2. $50/month is put on the e-Voucher card CRS would like to enable the program participant to keep a balance on the e-Voucher account for 60 days.

E voucher steps

1- Register Merchants

2- Manage e-vouchers

3- Redeem e-vouchers

4- Merchants Transfers

5- Reports

Merchant Database

Merchant Information

2- Manage E-voucher

.

E voucher screen

Display voucher

Refill voucher

3- Redeem e-voucher ( 7 transactions)

Type *202#

send

6.Deposit7. Withdrawal8. redeem voucher

8 [send]

Enter voucher ID

Answer: 1234

Enter purchase amount

Answer:300

Please pass the phone to the beneficiary to enter secret PIN then press send to ensure privacy

Please e voucher PIN to confirm the payment

Answer: ******

Payment of 300 gdes receive from e voucher ID 1234

1 3 4

5 6 7

2

5- Reports

Report format

Digicel staff Record and train the program participants

Record and train the merchants on the system

CRS StaffThe office manager manages the database, refills the e-voucher and verifies the transaction

E-voucher: Staff Support

Physical

• Cost- 5 US per voucher, to be printed in

Dominican Republic- At least 3 CRS animators for each fair- Security agent to be paid

• Efficiency- 10 days of data entry after each fair- One day to serve all the beneficiaries

Electronic

• Cost- .60 US cents per transaction,- No one from CRS is needed- No security agent to be paid

• Efficiency- No data entry, data available during

transactions- Transaction can be made during the

entire month

E-voucher: Key Benefits

E-voucher: Key challenges

• Contract development and negotiation – Haitian lawyer

• Utilization of knowledgeable community members to educate program participants

• Develop effective training materials – many photos and graphics

Lessons Learned – mobile money transfers

• Payment to vendors – depends on if mobile companies can offer higher amounts

• Possible applications with SILC groups

• Can be used in other emergency situations

Way Forward – mobile money with CRS/Haiti

Thank you!