* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Cash assistance is quick to deliver, cost-effective and provides people in need with greater choice and flexibility.
This week, the Council of the EU adopted Conclusions on multi-purpose cash-based humanitarian assistance recognising this type of aid as an efficient and effective response to humanitarian needs. This is a major step by the EU Member States which makes EU humanitarian aid more people-centered.
Among the advantages of cash assistance are the empowerment of beneficiaries and the transfer of decision power to people who can choose what to buy to meet their most pressing needs, as well as benefits for local economies. In addition, such assistance enhances protection, is provided in a gender-sensitive manner and, by building self-reliance, it helps create conditions for reducing aid dependency of communities in the future.
The European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department (ECHO) has increasingly supported cash assistance in recent years. The fastest increase has been reached in providing food assistance: today over 30% of EU food assistance is provided via cash transfers.
Read the full story on ECHO's website.
