This paper focuses on comparing three strands of social protection tools that primarily take the promotive approach with the specific objective of directly reducing poverty. The first is a ‘Graduation’ model which combines transfer of assets with several other promotive and protective components to create pathways out of poverty. With a strong focus on reaching the extreme-poor, this model is also known as ‘Targeting Ultra-Poor’ program. The second is a generic ‘livelihood’ program that varies substantially in the specific intervention(s) and target groups. These programs sometimes also include credit or input packages (such as seeds or fertilizers). Finally, the third is ‘unconditional cash transfers’ which adopts the simpler approach of transferring lump sum cash without any conditionality attached. Despite the differences in the composition of interventions, all three strands of programs have a similarity in objective to reduce poverty through a sustainable increase in participants’ income. The paper presents this comparative analysis at two levels. Firstly, conclusions are drawn based on global evidence of the cost-effectiveness of the three types of model. Secondly, since the core objective of this paper is to reflect on Bangladesh, specific examples of interventions from the country are discussed followed by a benefit-cost analysis. The report concludes that despite the laudable successes in reducing ultra-poverty in Bangladesh through scaling up innovative initiatives by development agencies in the last two decades, eradication of extreme poverty remains a challenge. While the Graduation approach needs to be continued, it should focus on generating better evidence of livelihood and cash transfers as alternative approaches.
Authors: Sulaiman, Munshi; Misha, Farzana
Type: Report
Year: 2016
