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CASH PROGRAMME REVIEW FOR IDPs IN KABUL INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS 551. Cash Approach for Winter Assistance for IDPs in the KISData collected for the survey showed food and fuel needs were mentioned as the primary needs ofrespondents during the winter; but that food remains their main spending priority despite provision ofin-kind assistance. Concern about health and affordability of health facilities was revealed to beparticularly high, with serious repercussions on morbidity and mortality in the winter time, and higherindebtedness. Interviews with local traders further underlines these items are those which are mostsubject to inflation of prices and lack of availability during the winter.Moreover, our survey and qualitative field work showed the stability of household’s income is deeplyimpacted by seasonal variations, with en unable to find sufficient employment opportunities andresorting to debt as a coping mechanism rising considerably in the winter period. In the winter, thesituation of the KIS is one of emergency calling for short-term effective mechanisms relieving familiesfrom resorting to distress coping mechanisms. Several options can be considered:Anticipatory strategies: Winter is predictable and should not be addressed as a shock. Thefact that it is indicates high levels of vulnerability throughout the year. Preventive measuresincluding regular injection of cash over extended periods of time, activities promotinglivelihood, and sensitization about the use of cash can therefore be included as part ofroutine interventions to allow better resilience to shocks.Mix of food and non-food items: Due to inflationary prices of food and fuel and their lack ofavailability, cash-based programmes would gain in effectiveness and reduce risks of inflationby being combined with in-kind distribution of food and non-food items. In this regard, arecent Samuel Hall/WFP study 46 highlights that a mix of both cash vouchers and food is moreeffective in protecting families against the need to adopt austerity measures underminingtheir future livelihoods. Instead of adopting food depletion measures, food vouchersbeneficiaries borrow from friends and relatives purchase food on credit, and develop longertermrecovery strategies such as investment in health, education and repayment of debts. Itfurther underlines that households who received both cash vouchers and food rations aremore likely to allocate a higher proportion of their resources to other needs – from livelihoodsto education and health, repayment of debts, clothing and transport.Understanding of seasonality: Given the labour market is non-functional or minimal in thewinter period, cash-for work can be considered as another way to temporarily inject cash inpoor households – in consultation with the communities’ and in accordance withgovernmental acceptability. Targeting productive members of the households is not an issuegiven the low risks of diversion from employment opportunities since those are low; and theredistribution practices inside the household reported in the survey. Livelihood activities suchas vocational training activities, however, would be more efficient in other seasons, whendistress levels are lower.Health vouchers entitling beneficiaries to a free medical visit and free medication. Partnershipwith partner health NGOs active in the KIS to pay for a doctor/ private clinic to visit camps ona regular basis is an option that would ensure availability of services.2. Cash-based approach as a long-term solutionThe resilience and sustainability of livelihoods is a key to enable households to withstand shocks andstresses, move out of poverty and away from dependence on assistance. Injecting cash throughcash-based initiatives – whether direct cash grants or conditional cash approaches) can be anefficient way to either permit beneficiaries to address their most urgent needs and mobilize theirassets for other activities, or to allocate their other resources to livelihood. To reduce the46 SAMUEL HALL CONSULTING (2013 upcoming), Cost effectiveness study, Commissioned by WFP Afghanistan.