Social transfers: An effective approach to fight food insecurity and extreme poverty. Concept note

In terms of targets, the EC emphasises that a comprehensive social protection policy should extend from support for extremely poor people to wider categories of people living with poverty and vulnerability. The note also gives many examples of the impact of social transfers in terms of reducing poverty, hunger and malnutrition, improving livelihoods, health, education, etc. However, it specifies that there are certain prerequisites before social transfers can be implemented. These include analysing the type and scale of poverty, verifying that the institutional and political context is favourable, that an appropriate legal framework exists and that social expenditure is rationalised. At the operational level, the note identifies the points to consider for implementing social transfers: the type of transfer (form, value), the target, how it will be delivered, any conditions to be applied, management, points to be developed and illustrated in a "Reference Document". The note also shows the opportunities for EC intervention. The EC approach to social transfers must be particularly flexible and adapted to the context, following a sequence, and ranging from short to medium term. In fact many EC tools are already available for this type of intervention, including Country Strategy Documents, National Indicative Programmes, the Food Security Thematic Programme (FSTP), counter-cyclical interventions (Food Facility, FLEX support for vulnerability) and budgetary support.

 European Commission, EuropeAid - February 2010