CLARISSA Cash Plus Social Protection Intervention: An Evaluation

Abstract

This paper presents the results of the multi-method evaluation of the CLARISSA Cash Plus pilot, which was an innovative social protection scheme for tackling social ills, including the worst forms of child labour. A universal and unconditional ‘cash plus’ programme, it combined community mobilisation, case work, and cash transfers, and was implemented across a high-density, low-income neighbourhood in Dhaka. Findings show that the intervention was impactful in reducing people’s poverty and increasing their wellbeing and resilience. Impacts on work and working conditions were present but limited, quite likely because impact pathways on this ultimate outcome are complex and overlapping. The positive synergies between cash and non-cash components were marked and strongly suggest the need to replicate and scale an intervention of this nature. Recommendations from the evidence are offered for government, donors, and civil society.