The power of choice: the effects of unrestricted cash transfers on Syrian refugee households

Jordan hosts over 660,000 Syrian refugees who fled their country since the eruption of the Syrian civil war in 2011. Entering the ninth year since the outbreak of the conflict, there are currently over 650,000 Syrian refugees registered with UNHCR in Jordan, of whom 79 percent live in rural and urban host communities and 21 percent in formal refugee camps. WFP through its General Food Assistance (GFA) programme provides cash-based transfers to refugees throughout Jordan.

In 2017, WFP applying a phased approach started rolling out the “Choice” modality in host communities, i.e. transitioning from restricted (evouchers) to unrestricted cash assistance. This modality allows beneficiaries to redeem the entirety or parts of their entitlement both at ATMs and WFPcontracted shops.

To better understand the effects of the modality shift WFP conducted a pre-post longitudinal study with beneficiaries in Irbid governorate who switched to unrestricted cash in 2018