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6 DRC / DANISH REFUGEE COUNCILeconomic profile of IDP households in the surveyed KIS. While 50% express that they would neverreturn to their place of origin, 97% specifically mentioned wanting to stay in the same location for atleast another year. Having been in displacement for at least 3 years, the vast majority of householdssurveyed had no intention of moving – making them well-suited for assistance outside of emergencyactivities, to be included in livelihoods programming. These trends are relevant to the scope of DRC’splanning for cash-based assistance to promote livelihoods in the KIS.Burden of health problemsA key finding of this research is the central position of health in surveyed populations’ concerns. Theyspend on average 9% of their monthly resources on medical treatment, and generally have to incurdebts to pay for these. High levels of debt were identified both as a consequence of necessaryexpenses for health care, and an aggravating factor further impeding improvement of healthconditions. In other words, people enter into debt to pay for medical care, and those that are themost indebted are also the more likely to have health problems. Insalubrious living conditions causingrecurrent health complications, limited access to quality health services, and high levels ofindebtedness, were found to be vulnerabilities specific to the KIS visited. Of particular concern is thefact that IDPs did not often go to public health care facilities, not only because of the perceived lowquality of health care, but because governmental health facilities reportedly rejected them, either dueto lack of identification or other considerations. As a result, IDP households would mainly rely onprivate doctors or private clinics.Spending as a response to shocksThe current practices of spending are dominated by shock-response, excluding planning for longerterminvestment. The present food needs of respondents are not met by their current level of income;they therefore consider upgrading food as a higher priority than investing in longer-term activitiesbenefitting their overall wellbeing. Hence, one of the core areas of analysis regarding IDP householdsin the KIS is to identify the main factors preventing them from escaping the cycle of shock-distresscoping mechanism and from eventually stepping out of the cycle of poverty.Indebtedness: IDPs’ main coping strategy80% of the households surveyed relied on credits and loans. 18% declared their debt to be up to 10times their income, and 15% over tenfold. As such, participants in focus group discussionsmentioned not only borrowing money in emergency situations, but resorting to loans from relativesand neighbours throughout the year in order to meet their basic needs. Engaging in a cycle ofindebtedness keeps households form transitioning out of extreme poverty: unplanned expenses aremet with further debts. As a result, if given cash assistance, 72% would use it to repay debts. Overall,interviewees expressed their preference for a combination of food aid and cash assistance,highlighting the fact that cash flow and food are structural problems in the KIS, especially in thewinter.In this context, under which conditions can cash assistance work in the Kabul informal settlements?Is cash assistance a feasible assistance mechanism for IDPs in the KIS?Two factors are key – assessing whether market and security conditions are conducive to cashbasedprogramming.I. Assessing the feasibility of cash-based programming in the KISThis research finds that 2 central conditions are met for the implementation of cash assistance:Inflationary risks due to injection of cash appear minimal in the KISSecurity does not appear to be an obstacle to cash provision in the KIS.