HOW TO MAXIMIZE THE IMPACT OF ADAPTIVE SOCIAL PROTECTION IN CONTEXTS OF FRAGILITY, CONFLICT, AND VIOLENCE: FOUR OPERATIONAL LESSONS FROM BURKINA FASO AND CAMEROON Written by Mira Saidi SASPP Policy Note Series POLICY NOTE 12 | NOVEMBER 2024 SASPP Policy Note Series 2 November 2024 1 KEY RECOMMENDATIONS In recent years, violent conflict has spiked significantly, has increased its support to ASP systems in Sahelian countries affecting low-income countries in particular, and shaping an experiencing FCV. To deepen our understanding of ASP impacts increasingly complex fragility landscape. By 2030, over half in FCV settings, the Sahel Adaptive Social Protection Program of the world’s extreme poor are expected to live in countries (SASPP) conducted almost 400 in-depth qualitative interviews experiencing fragility, conflict, and violence (FCV). Conflict and with ASP program beneficiaries in Burkina Faso and Cameroon. poverty are strongly interconnected; not only does conflict compound experiences of poverty, but economic instability, The following recommendations, drawn from analysis of these resource scarcity, and state weakness also exacerbate conflict interviews, can maximize the impacts of ASP in FCV settings: dynamics. In the Sahel, one of the poorest and most conflict- • Consider providing longer term and greater support for affected regions in the world, countries additionally face high households experiencing significant conflict and insecurity. vulnerability to climate change and other shocks, and a growing • Incorporate flexibility into program objectives and anticipate the influx of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) is need to adapt programs to changing security environments. placing further strain on limited services and resources. • Make deliberate efforts to design programs that strengthen Adaptive social protection (ASP) has been proven to have strong social cohesion. positive impacts on poverty and vulnerability globally and in the Sahel, but its impact in FCV settings is less documented. The • Strengthen communication to boost trust in government and World Bank’s Social Protection and Jobs (SPJ) Global Practice reinforce the social contract. Photo: © Curt Carnemark / World Bank SASPP Policy Note Series 3 November 2024 2 INTRODUCTION Violent conflict has spiked significantly in recent years, and the channels through which they materialize is critical to particularly in low-income countries, and the fragility landscape adapting their design and implementation processes to maximize is becoming increasingly complex. By 2030, it is estimated that their impacts. almost 60 percent of the world’s extreme poor will live in countries experiencing fragility, conflict and violence (FCV). In 2024 alone, To better understand the role social safety nets can play in FCV inflation and worsening climate impacts are expected to further environments, the Sahel Adaptive Social Protection Program reduce income per capita in low-income FCV countries.1 Low-income (SASPP) conducted almost 400 in-depth qualitative interviews FCV countries, including in the Sahel, face a multitude of overlapping with ASP program beneficiaries in Burkina Faso and Cameroon. shocks and challenges, exacerbated by insecurity and fragility, and This study complements the existing literature, summarized in “The disproportionately affecting the poorest and most vulnerable. This Impact of Social Safety Nets on Economic, Social and Political is compounded by a growing number of refugees and internally Outcomes in Fragile, Conflict and Violent Contexts: A Review of displaced persons (IDPs), placing further strain on limited services the Evidence”. Interviews were undertaken in Burkina Faso, in the and resources. provinces of Yatenga and Passore (Nord region) between July and November 2022, and in the provinces of Ngaoui, Dhojong and Adaptive Social Protection (ASP) programs have demonstrated Meiganga (Adamaoua region) and Koza and Mora (Far North region) their ability to address poverty and some of its associated in Cameroon between January and April 2023. The interviews were vulnerabilities, but their impact in FCV contexts is less conducted with program beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries (within documented. Staying engaged in FCV settings is essential to benefitting and non-benefitting villages), as well as with community preserving economic and human capital gains. Recognizing leaders. Sites were selected to reflect varying levels of insecurity and this, the World Bank Group Strategy for Fragility, Conflict, and to include regions with high numbers of refugees or IDPs. Violence 2020-2025, highlights the Bank’s commitment to staying engaged, whether in contexts experiencing longstanding Results and analysis of these interview are presented in the SPJ FCV challenges or in settings only recently experiencing FCV- Discussion Paper, “Safety Nets in Contexts of Violence, Fragility and related shocks. As part of this effort, over the last decade, the Forced Displacement: The Case of Burkina Faso and Cameroon”. World Bank’s Social Protection and Jobs (SPJ) Global Practice This policy note, informed by the discussion paper, summarizes key has significantly increased its engagement in FCV countries. findings and recommendations to guide ASP operations and policy Understanding the impacts of ASP programs in FCV contexts to maximize their impacts in FCV settings. Photo: Arne Hoel / World Bank SASPP Policy Note Series 4 November 2024 CHANNELS THROUGH WHICH ADAPTIVE SOCIAL PROTECTION PROGRAMS 3 CAN IMPACT INDIVIDUALS AND COMMUNITIES IN FCV CONTEXTS In FCV settings, the study identified three key channels through mechanisms. Finally, the political channel refers to the impact of which ASP programs impact individuals and communities – programs on citizen-state relationships and the social contract. The material, social, and political. The material channel refers to the allocation of resources by the state can enhance citizens’ trust in and (re) distribution of monetary benefits and resources provided by favorable attitude towards it, thereby increasing state legitimacy and safety net programs. By providing economic benefits, programs citizen’s confidence in and expectations of the state, and compliance can strengthen households’ economic wellbeing and resilience to with state institutions and authority. Table 1 illustrates the potential shocks, caused directly or indirectly by conflict. The social channel impacts, both positive (+) and negative (-), of ASP programs on refers to the role that ASP programs play in supporting individuals individuals and communities across these three channels and to form new relationships and ensure greater participation in highlights the importance of program design and implementation communities. These new relationships can act as social insurance in ensuring positive impacts. TABLE 1. Examples of channels for ASP programs’ impact on households and communities in FCV contexts Material channel Social channel Political channel + New resources reduce food insecurity + Savings and investment groups + Benefits provided by (and attributed to) and improve wellbeing. supported by programs can foster governments can raise confidence in, + New resources provide a buffer for social insurance mechanisms through and expectations of, the state. emergency expenses. new business partnerships and + New resources can build confidence/ + New resources support investments in contacts. independence of marginalized groups, human capital – nutrition, health, and + New resources and program activities changing their position vis-à-vis the education. (training, sensitization, group state. + New resources support investments in activities, etc.) can foster new social + Increased participation in the economy livelihoods that build resilience against relationships. can shift beneficiaries’ plans for the future shocks. - Programs can create social tensions future and alter their standing, boosting + New resources promote the between beneficiaries and non- citizen engagement. diversification of productive activities. beneficiaries. + Productive inclusion measures + New resources can reduce + Programs can reduce intimate partner can bolster confidence in business vulnerability to theft or violence (e.g., violence by reducing poverty and opportunities and individuals’ by building enclosures for livestock). stress. perceptions of what is possible. - New resources can make recipients - Programs can exacerbate + Access to health and education more vulnerable to theft. intrahousehold conflict over control of can change attitudes toward, and resources. expectations of, government. + By creating new economic + Access to identification documents opportunities, programs can result in can foster a sense of citizenship or new relationships (i.e. hiring of day- belonging. laborers by beneficiaries). SASPP Policy Note Series 5 November 2024 FOUR OPERATIONAL RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENHANCE THE IMPACT OF 4 ADAPTIVE SOCIAL PROTECTION IN FCV ENVIRONMENTS 1. Consider providing longer term and greater support for households experiencing significant conflict and insecurity. ASP programs seek to improve the economic wellbeing of that such households are highly vulnerable to food insecurity and poor households and their long-term resilience, however have less access to support.3 Social safety nets in these conditions strengthening long-term resilience remains a challenge in are essential. In Burkina Faso and Cameroon, program beneficiaries insecure settings. Beneficiaries in insecure or highly insecure areas reported increased expenditure on health emergencies and of Burkina Faso and Cameroon did not invest most of their assistance education, essential to protecting and strengthening human capital. toward productive activities for fear of losing their investments to These findings are in line with the limited literature, which shows that armed group attacks and raids, due to prior occurrences of such cash-based interventions support consumption and improve food events.2 Beneficiaries also faced security challenges in accessing security and nutrition, even in FCV contexts.4 However, the current their fields or the market, further limiting their economic activity. study found that the reported reduction in household vulnerability Beneficiaries in these areas also indicated greater risk aversion and food insecurity was not maintained beyond the program end, due to heightened uncertainty, prioritizing immediate needs and due to the limitations imposed by conflict on household capacity to consumption over future planning. productively invest part of the support received. Given the limited economic opportunities for these households and the insecurity For households in relatively more secure settings, greater support they experience; it may be necessary for programs to consider (value of transfer) may be needed to ensure longer-term impacts longer term consumption support. and benefits. Beneficiaries in relatively more secure regions (such as in Passore in Burkina Faso), invested in cattle or in productive activities, maintaining benefits long after program completion. However, even in more secure settings, some beneficiaries were too poor to invest, We just buy the necessities (food, clothing instead using most of the assistance for immediate consumption. This and others) for the household, the rest we was especially the case for displaced individuals, who had very limited complete with little money that we manage to resources as a result of their displacement. have and we save. The money is not enough For households in FCV settings, social safety nets provide to invest in breeding and resell afterwards to essential support, particularly among the poor, however longer- make a profit. term support in these settings may be needed. Households in —Beneficiary husband 674-H, Sector 10, Burkina Faso proximity to conflict have limited access to markets or opportunities to engage in income generating activities. Global evidence has found 2. Incorporate flexibility into objectives and anticipate the need to adapt programs to changing security environments. Insecurity varies in form and intensity across regions and However, to maximize their potential impact, programs may need timelines. As evidenced by Burkina Faso and Cameroon, levels to adapt their objectives and delivery to the specific sub-context in of insecurity vary across provinces and even communities. Social which they are operating. safety nets can have positive impacts in insecure environments. SASPP Policy Note Series 6 November 2024 National programs should adapt to insecurity and incorporate or mobile phone stolen. Similarly in Cameroon, where payments a more modular design in FCV countries. National safety net were not digital, some beneficiaries were targeted by thieves and programs are typically designed for secure environments. To armed men for their benefits. While there is no ideal or completely be effective in insecure environments, it is important that these safe delivery method, programs may consider ensuring programs adapt to the contexts and needs of beneficiary households. discreetness with regard payments, staggering or spacing out Intervening in an insecure context is similar to responding to a payment days, or even not maintaining regular payment schedules protracted crisis. Short-term shock responses aim to temporarily to avoid predictability. Though this last approach is not generally safeguard household consumption and human capital.5 However, recommended for ASP programs – since their impacts rely on the households in insecure settings face an ongoing and longer-term regularity and predictability of payments – it may be necessary in shock. In such contexts, it may be necessary for programs to prioritize FCV contexts. Developing various scenarios and codifying them safeguarding consumption, survival, and human capital, rather than in programs’ operational manuals is necessary to ensure swift longer term objectives of increased productivity and resilience. adjustments in fast changing environments. For instance, in insecure areas, national programs could promote savings mechanisms to assist households in accumulating funds for use in emergencies or for productive investments when insecurity subsides, rather than propose economic inclusion interventions. I have heard that many women beneficiaries This flexibility needs to be anticipated and reflected in program have been victims of theft. I know three procedures, institutional arrangements, and budgets. women who were victims of theft ... When thieves see the big black cellphone in your Adaptations should also be built into delivery mechanisms. hand, they know you’re a beneficiary. Some beneficiaries in both countries faced security issues when retrieving their benefit. In Burkina Faso, payments were digital, but, —Female beneficiary 188-F, Sector 13, Burkina Faso as in many other low-income contexts, beneficiaries still traveled to retrieve the benefits, and some reported having their benefits 3. Make deliberate efforts to design programs that strengthen social cohesion. Adaptive social protection can contribute to social cohesion lasting impacts beyond the program timeline, acting as a long- in contexts of fragility and insecurity, with long term impacts. term informal social insurance for households. Program beneficiaries in Burkina Faso and Cameroon reported forming new relationships or strengthening bonds - being a Enhancing social cohesion through social safety nets requires beneficiary created a new shared identity.6 The opportunities for strong communication and delivery mechanisms; a challenge social interaction that are integrated into ASP programs (through in FCV contexts. While social safety nets can contribute to social assemblies, payment points, accompanying measures, etc.), cohesion, they may also increase grievances, particularly from non- contributed to building these new relationships and strengthening beneficiaries. This outcome is not unique to FCV contexts; however, it social cohesion. These findings support evidence from other FCV contexts.7 Program beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries also reported resource sharing. Beneficiaries helped their extended Yes, some people when they receive their families and friends, while providing more limited support to money, they give some to those who don’t more distant acquaintances or villagers. Sharing was even more receive the money. We’re all from the same common within displaced communities, which may be due in part group, so the money belongs to all of us, even to homogeneity, or because their shared trauma led to a greater understanding of each other’s plight. Overall, beneficiaries and if they only register certain people non-beneficiaries reported having confidence in their ability to —Male non-beneficiary, refugee, Yamba Baya, 10-H, rely on others for help in times of need. The new bonds formed, Cameroon and resources shared as a result of the program can thus have SASPP Policy Note Series 7 November 2024 should be carefully managed in conflict environments. Perceptions of communication. Other communication mechanisms are equally inequality and resentment among non-beneficiaries are often more important, particularly grievance redress mechanisms that enable frequent when they do not understand the targeting methodology, beneficiaries to voice their concerns and provide feedback. Such or assume it is unfair.8 In locations where communication about mechanisms can also provide beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries the program was stronger, non-beneficiaries tended to exhibit less with additional information, contributing to shifts in perception animosity. Strong communication around the program objectives and understanding. Innovative solutions for effective two-way and targeting is essential to limit discontent, though this may not be communication is a challenge in FCV environments, however programs’ priority in areas with limited implementation capacity or they are essential for increasing the impact of programs on social greater constraints. In addition, the challenges of program access cohesion. and delivery in contexts of fragility and insecurity can extend to 4. Strengthen communication to boost trust in government and reinforce the social contract. ASP can enhance positive attitudes towards government, the support they received. In Burkina Faso, respondents reported which can be invaluable in low-income and FCV settings. limited knowledge of the government’s role in the ASP program, In low-income and FCV settings, the social contract can face with many attributing their benefits to donors - indicating a missed significant challenges. Citizens can have limited expectations of their opportunity to build trust in public authority. More evidence is governments due to the governments’ inability to provide services or needed of the potential stabilizing role that positivity toward the security, in addition to limited opportunities for political participation government and toward one’s future could play in disincentivizing or participatory processes to impact policies. Knowledge of the collaboration with armed groups. government’s role in providing ASP programs is important to its contribution to the social contract. In this study, when beneficiaries There are limits to the extent to which social safety nets can were aware that the government was responsible for the program, impact long term relationships with governments. Awareness they exhibited more positive attitudes toward the state and toward of the government’s role can have differing impacts: in this study their future, regardless of the level of insecurity. They viewed the non-beneficiaries who knew the government was responsible for current situation with more hope than beneficiaries who were not the program reported feeling abandoned by the government in both aware of the government’s role or non-beneficiaries.9 Displaced secure and insecure areas. This created negative attitudes toward populations expressed greater positivity toward the government for the government and reduced positive perceptions of their future. In addition, the limited long-term economic effects or the temporary nature of programs may limit their ability to positively impact government relations and stabilization efforts. While budgetary This transfer made us feel how much the and programmatic challenges prevent a universal approach, this government is there for us, that it has not can be difficult for communities to understand and accept in very forgotten us and that we should no longer poor settings. It is important to mitigate the risk this creates for the worry about the security situation. social contract, including through increased communication with communities, or through a program design that prioritizes social —Beneficiary husband 10-H, Mont Ngaoui, Cameroon cohesion, and stability impacts by providing more limited resources to a larger share of the population. SASPP Policy Note Series 8 November 2024 CONCLUSION Social safety nets can yield positive impacts in FCV settings. Evidence from Burkina Faso and Cameroon demonstrate that ASP programs can effectively safeguard household consumption and human capital in FCV settings. Beneficiary households increased the number of meals and their expenditure on health and education. However, these benefits reduced after the program’s end, while the context often remained fragile or insecure. Program design requires careful consideration of the FCV setting and may require trade-offs with longer-term impacts. While national safety net programs are often designed to support poor and vulnerable households and promote their livelihoods and resilience, their objectives and design may need to be adjusted when they operate in FCV settings. Conflict calls for a greater focus on human capital safeguarding (rather than on economic resilience) and stabilizing through the promotion of social cohesion or trust in government. To achieve this, a broader approach over a longer timeframe may be necessary. Greater care is needed to increase the impact of ASP programs on social cohesion, including on citizen-state relationships. When programs are designed to encourage interaction, particularly among different communities and ethnicities, they can strengthen social cohesion. Strong communication and citizen engagement interventions, such as grievance redress mechanisms, can also contribute to social cohesion. Enhanced outreach and communication can avoid misunderstandings about programs, provide opportunities for non-beneficiaries to voice their concerns, and reassure communities of the government’s commitment. Although designing and implementing such efforts in FCV settings, where programs typically have limited access, remains a challenge, this policy note provides key pathways for adapting ASP programs in these contexts to maximize their impacts. 1 World Bank. 2023. Global Economic Prospects, January 2023. Washington, DC: World Bank. doi:10.1586/978-1-4648-1906-3. License: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0 IGO 2 “Before the transfer I had some animals but not many, and with the money [from the transfer] I bought even more. But Boko Haram took everything…. We had goats and chickens, the Boko Haram removed everything.” —Female beneficiary 2-F, Moutchikar, Cameroon 3 Tranchant et al. 2019. The impact of food assistance on food insecure populations during conflict: Evidence from a quasi-experiment in Mali. World Development, Volume 113, 2019, Pages 253-265. DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.01.027. 4 Fuselli et al. The Impact of Social Safety Nets on Economic, Social and Political Outcomes in Fragile, Conflict and Violent Contexts: A Review of the Evidence. Forthcoming 5 “Me and my family ate very well with the money from this program. Each time [we received the transfer] we bought meat, flour for porridge, rice, and cooking oil to make good dishes… I also used the money to go to the hospital during illnesses, and bought my children nice clothes during the Ramadan holidays… There are many children at my house, and they have to eat every day…” —Male beneficiary 18-H, refugee, Koldjima, Cameroon 6 “They have all become my friends, the day we meet, we laugh, we have fun like children. Each tells how the project has helped them. It’s really good.” —Female beneficiary 333-F, Sector 13, Burkina Faso 7 Sharma, Ambika; Menke, Jan. 2024. How Does Social Protection Impact Social Cohesion in the Sahel? A Review of Existing Evidence and Gaps. SASPP Technical Paper Series; Special Edition. © Washington, DC: World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/42232 8 “It’s become very complicated, because I face threats from many directions. It even happens, now that I think about it, that I’m sold products at higher prices on the market just because they think I have a lot of money.” —Beneficiary 3-F, Moutchikar, Cameroon 9 “We have never received help from the government, so they don’t take care of us…” —Female beneficiary 12-F, Ouattinoma, Burkina Faso SASPP Policy Note Series 9 November 2024 © 2024 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of The World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. 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