The Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP) of the Ethiopian government reportedly has introduced electronic money transfers for participants in the program, which provides money to food-insecure Ethiopians in return for labor on public works projects. The new system has allowed 20,000 Ethiopians to receive the money directly into their new bank accounts rather than through manual cash transfers by car or mule, which take days to process. According to data attributed to the World Bank, 20,000 Ethiopians have benefitted from this program. The government hopes to expand the project in 2013 to reach more of the program’s 7.5 participants. Started in 2005, PSNP is funded through 10 donors, including United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the World Bank.
USAID offers a suite of resources aimed at improving the outcomes of microenterprise development research and practice at http://microlinks.kdid.org/.
By Brett Cohen, Research Associate
About The Productive Safety Net Programme (Ethiopia)
Started in 2005, the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP) provides money to food-insecure Ethiopians in return for participating in public works projects. The program is funded through 10 donors, including United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the World Bank. As of 2012, the program has 7.5 million participants.
About The World Bank
The World Bank Group consists of five institutions, all of which are owned by its member countries. The Group’s mission is to improve living standards for people in the developing world. The World Bank Group encompasses the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) and the World Bank, which consists of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA).
About the United States Agency for International Development (USAID): The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is a government agency that provides international economic and humanitarian assistance. It focuses on areas such as economic growth, agriculture, trade, health, democracy, conflict prevention and humanitarian assistance. Under the Development Credit Authority (DCA), it provides credit guarantees that cover up to 50 percent of defaults on wholesale loans made by private financial institutions to institutions that lend on a retail basis to underserved borrowers. USAID had a total of USD 23.8 billion in budgetary resources in 2011.
Sources and Additional Resources
NewBusinessEthiopia.com story, “Electronic Transfer Benefits PSNP in Ethiopia”
http://www.newbusinessethiopia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=art…
MicroCapital.org story, June 1, 2012: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Women Entrepreneur Development Project of Ethiopia Borrow $50m From World Bank”
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-women-entrepreneur-develo…
MicroCapital.org story, January 27, 2012: “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Foundation’s Bankers Without Borders Alliance Partners With Association of Ethiopian Microfinance Institutions On Financial Forecasting Tools, Management Information Systems”
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-foundations-banke…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: The World Bank
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=The…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: United States Agency for International Development
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=United+States+Agency+for+International+Development+%28USAID%29
Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/
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