This report investigates beneficiary and community perspectives on the Palestinian national cash transfer programme in the West Bank. This is one of six country reports for the DFID commissioned project: Transforming cash transfers: beneficiary and community perspectives on social protection programming. Each report provides robust evidence from the perspective of beneficiaries and their communities that will improve the quality and effectiveness of cash transfer programmes.

Cash transfers are predictable payments made directly to poor people.  There is growing evidence that cash transfers have a range of positive effects, however the evidence varies – it is strong, for example, on reducing poverty and hunger, and helping people to access health and education services.  But it is weaker on more transformational effects; there is strong logic but little evidence of the effects of cash transfers on citizen’s voice, empowerment, gender equality, social cohesion and state-building. 

These six country reports are the first of several sets of outputs from the research project. 

Briefing papers, synthesis products, and participatory M&E guidance to inform future programming, will be available in 2013.