The impact of earned and windfall cash transfers on livelihoods and conservation in Sierra Leone

This study by Bulte et al. measures the impact of a cash transfer programme aimed at alleviating poverty and reducing pressure on the natural environment in Sierra Leone. Researchers offered aid to 91 rural communities, which are dependent on slash-and-burn agriculture in three forms: as windfall transfers; aid distributed through chieftains; and an aid-for-work programme. The study concludes that the manner in which aid is distributed — communal versus individual and windfall versus earned — has a significant effect on how the aid will be used.