Innovation in NFI Assistance: NFI Cash Voucher Fairs in D.R. Congo

1. Global Shelter Cluster – Non Food Item (NFI) Workshop Nairobi, 7-9 December 2016 NFI Cash Voucher Fairs – D.R.Congo

2. Content • http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/drcongo_62208.html • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJrnnLcE6S8 • Beginnings • Transformation, Adaptation, and Scale up • Today • Lessons Learned • Lessons to be Learned?

3. What is an NFI Cash Voucher Fair? • Artificial market allowing NFI-vulnerable families to access essential household, personal and hygiene-related items • Not a standard kit • Value vouchers redeemable for NFI of the families choice • Sometimes in combination with some direct distribution • Selected vendors; no guaranteed payment or subsidy • Vendor agreements to respect basic principles, price ceilings for certain items • Certain items not allowed – food, seed, livestock, medicines • Women represent the family as primary registered beneficiary

4. Beginnings • Diversity of NFI needs; every family is different • Possible to provide more choice, options without comprising quality ? • Seed Fair experiences  “Can we try it for NFI?” • 2008: Pilots through a UNICEF IDP return program - 2 different provinces with CRS, Caritas Butembo-Beni, NRC

5. Beginnings • Initial Skepticism : • Market capacity and vendor willingness? • Quality of items? • Time needed to prepare? • Beneficiary comprehension? • 2009-2010: Scaling up through • existing NFI programmes with dedicated technical support (AVSI, Caritas Kindu, CRS, IRC, NRC, Solidarites International) • Others experimenting - Concern Worldwide, Care • Overwhelmingly positive feedback – beneficiaries, donors, vendors, NGOs  ‘Let’s do more fairs!’

6. Beneficiary Appreciation of Quality of Articles Source: Day-of-fair interviews

7. Transformation, Adaptation, & Scaling Up • Promotion through the DRC NFI/Shelter Cluster at national and provincial levels • Case studies (CaLP) and Learning • Adapting monitoring and Information Management (HAP/HRP) • Post-intervention Monitoring showing same/better outcomes than distributions • Increased donor interest and questioning of distribution programmes – ‘Have you considered fairs?’ • Organizations’ finance and procurement adapt to accommodate the approach

8. Transformation, Adaptation & Scaling Up • Collaboration with Food Security actors-joint NFI and Food Fairs • Experiences with vouchers in open markets and pilots in e-vouchers • Promotion of locally made NFI • Better practices on setting price ceilings of key items with beneficiary and vendor committees • Some actors - inclusion of services – school fees, health • Better market analysis • Adapting voucher value to purchasing power • Combined with distributions of some items

9. Locally-made Cooking Pots NRC Fair – Mangina, North Kivu- July 2016

10. Today • Every NFI actor in DRC now uses both distribution and fair approaches; used in all provinces and territories • Since 2013, over 50%(in terms of families assisted) of all NFI assistance delivered through voucher fairs • Jan. 2009 – Oct. 2016 • over 775,000 householdsassisted (over 3.8 million people) via NFI voucher fairs • $55,311,051– injected into local markets through thousands of NFI vendors

12. January – October 2016 – NFI assistance in eastern DRC – Fairs and Distributions

13. January – October 2016 – NFI assistance in Katanga province– Fairs and Distributions

14. Today • Increased sophistication and sharing of good practices – Thematic Technical Workshops • Selecting vendors • Setting price platforms • Mitigating fraud • Promoting locally made NFI • Best Practice: Adapting to family size • 1-3 persons: $50 • 4-6 persons: $75 • 7 and more: $90. • Collaboration with Cash Working Group and Minimum Expenditure Baskets (MEB)

15. Today • Developing a ‘How To’ Guide book on NFI voucher fairs • Continued studies/learning – through post-fair-monitoring (e.g. use of shelter and livelihood materials) • Using androids, tablets for better purchasing pattern analysis • Monitoring Outcome and ‘Impact’ • Sharing beyond DRC

16. Lessons Learned • Do not underestimate dynamism, flexibility, and efficiency of the commercial sector • It’s not about what’s in stock, but what they can get • Convince a vendor to come to one and he/she will want to participate in more • No need to subsidize vendor costs – transport, credit, warehousing on site, etc.

17. Lessons Learned • You don’t need to pay cash at the site; vendors prefer delayed payment through ‘safer’ modalities – check, bank transfer • Be wary of local commercial organizations • Be wary of local authorities – ‘taxation’ • Concern of poor quality – not a significant issue

18. Lessons Learned • Be flexible – • adapt voucher values • include in-kind distribution (tarps, jerry-cans, ..) or required commodity vouchers • Programme people need new skill sets – markets, commercial sector, but you don’t need to be an expert • Finance and procurement systems can adapt and still meet requirements for rigor

19. Lessons Learned • Opening markets ; vendors going to new areas ; even contributing to community reconciliation • One size does not fit all – vast diversity of beneficiary choice • Appropriate for a range of affected population – returnees, IDPs in sites/camps, IDPs in host families, host families themselves, survivors of natural disaster • The value of choice to dignity and normalcy

20. Lessons Learned • Gender considerations • Understand household decision-making and gender dynamics • Woman adults in household coming to fairs as best practice • But evidence does not show considerable differences in purchasing patterns between men and women • Livelihood recovery options • Opportunity to ‘repay’ real and social debt

21. Lessons to be Learned ? • Understanding / Analyzing / Quantifying the multiplier effect on local economies – are there negative implications? • Items to allow and to forbid? Based on what criteria? • How best to measure purchasing patterns? • When do people simply need cash?

22. Thank You!