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Although emergency employment projects focus on short-term support, they can create
long-term employment opportunities when they are linked to the strengthening of
local businesses and implemented as part of a larger local economic recovery plan. The
sustainability of results is also enhanced when money earned from short-term employment
is spent on long-term family investments, such as education and housing. Moreover,
the involvement of local institutions in implementation can contribute to local capacity
building and even state building.
3.1.2 Developing and implementing an emergency employment project
This section provides guidance on the following aspects of developing and implementing
an emergency employment project: (a) situation assessment, (b) developing a project document,
(c) management arrangements, (d) recruitment and procurement, (e) determining
the wage structure and arranging wage disbursement, (f) selection of participants and
subprojects/activities, (g) monitoring and evaluation (M&E), (h) partnerships, (i) communication
strategy, and (j) exit strategy. Both the development and the implementation of the
project should facilitate and encourage the active participation of local and/or national
authorities and crisis-affected people, including women, youth, displaced people, people
with disabilities, and ex-combatants, wherever possible. Due to the urgency of setting up
emergency employment projects, these undertakings are sometimes designed without
sufficient consultation; this should be avoided to the extent possible.
3.1.2 (a) Situation assessment
The livelihoods and economic recovery assessment (see Chapter 2) is usually the primary
source for information on whether an emergency employment project is appropriate for
the local context. This assessment also identifies the existing opportunities and constraints
for implementing livelihoods and economic recovery interventions. A supplementary
rapid survey may be needed at the local level to clarify the communities and community
members who would most benefit from the emergency employment project, the most
suitable implementing partners, and the most appropriate type of subprojects or schemes
for the project to support. Supplementary data gathering may also be necessary in order
to ensure compliance with the guiding principles for livelihoods and economic recovery
programming, such as gender sensitivity, conflict and disaster sensitivity, and sustainability. 14
In programming for emergency employment creation, a particular set of information is
needed in order to determine whether cash-for-work, food-for-work, or a combination
of the two will be most effective. Cash-for-work is often more attractive because participants
tend to prefer cash, cash provides versatility, and it empowers people to make
choices and to act on their own decisions. Cash-for-work can be effective, however, only
in situations where markets are functioning and basic consumption goods are available.
Moreover, cash-for-work is not appropriate in situations where it might contribute to inflation,
exacerbate underlying social tensions, or increase vulnerability among participants
(e.g., by increasing the risk of sexual and gender-based violence against women who are
known to possess cash). The cost of implementing food-for-work projects is often higher
because of the transaction costs associated with food delivery. The cost effectiveness of
a cash-for-work project often depends on the availability of mechanisms for electronic
bank transfers and security requirements for the safe distribution of cash wages.
While the precise questions to be asked and decisions to be made are context-specific,
the decision tree in Figure 3.1 below, developed by the Women’s Refugee Committee,
can help to determine the appropriate intervention or mix of interventions. In situations
14 The guiding principles are presented in section
1.3.4 above. Key points to consider for ensuring
that crosscutting priorities are effectively incorporated
into emergency employment projects
are presented in section 3.1.3 below.
Livelihoods & Economic Recovery in Crisis Situations