Ethiopia: Cash Transfers Bring Hope to Communities in Oromia and Tigray

Women gather together for a meeting. CARE International

Amidst the rolling landscapes of Oromia’s Borena Zone and Tigray’s Central and Eastern Zones, stories of hope and resilience are emerging. Adi Abduba, a 75-year-old widow with a disability, lives in the remote Boji Kebele, Dhas Woreda (District), in Ethiopia’s Oromia regional state. Like countless others in this arid region, her life has been a relentless struggle against poverty and hunger. A devastating drought wiped out 20 of her family’s cattle, pushing her to the brink of despair. With no food and little hope, Adi faced an uncertain future. “I was experiencing a lot of hardship before receiving the cash,” Adi said. “There were days when we went without eating, and my family couldn’t bear to see my suffering.” 

Adi’s story is a poignant example of the challenges faced by millions in Ethiopia. Many regions across the country are experiencing systemic food insecurity. While the country has seen a substantial decline in poverty over the last 20 years, almost a quarter of the population remains below the poverty line. Most of the poor live in rural areas, where small land holdings resulting from high population growth and adverse weather conditions make it difficult for many families to meet their food security needs from agricultural production and livestock rearing. 

Food insecurity and incomes in rural areas are highly seasonal, with less food available during the lean season. During the harvest season, there is more food available in the market at lower prices, while farmers have resupplied their own food stocks. Food insecurity rises as household food stocks decline and commodities become scarcer and more expensive in the market. 

Then came a lifeline: the Joint Emergency Operation (JEOP) 2.0, a USAID-funded program implemented by CARE, among other consortium members implementing the initiative in other areas of the country. Adi was among the fortunate recipients of a cash transfer, receiving 10,850 Ethiopian Birr ($188). This unexpected windfall transformed her life. 

With the cash, Adi purchased essential food items to feed her family. The immediate relief was palpable, but the impact extended beyond survival. The cash transfer empowered Adi to make choices about her family’s needs, restoring a sense of dignity and control over their lives. 

Since the beginning of the program, 262,961 individuals across Oromia and Tigray have received cash transfers, totaling 999,143,950 Ethiopian Birr (approximately $17.5 million). Individuals were able to receive the funds either by direct cash distributions, deposits in bank accounts, or funds loaded into smart cards. 

“Cash-based interventions are a powerful tool to address the immediate needs of vulnerable populations while also stimulating local economies,” said Yusuf Gebi, CARE Ethiopia’s Technical Advisor for Cash-Based Interventions. “By providing people with the means to purchase what they need, we empower them to make their own decisions and build resilience.” 

JEOP 2.0 is a comprehensive food security program using in-kind and cash transfers to support targeted food-insecure populations. By addressing the immediate needs of vulnerable communities like those in Borena and Tigray, the program is helping to lay the groundwork for a more secure and prosperous future. 

As Ethiopia continues to face challenges, programs like JEOP 2.0 offer a glimmer of hope for the vulnerable. Through initiatives like these, individuals like Adi Abduba are finding the strength to overcome adversity and build a better life for themselves and their families. 

About JEOP 

JEOP 2.0 is driven by five key implementation parameters: a scalable general food distribution model, strengthening humanitarian-development-peace linkages, filling nutrient gaps, fostering innovation and operational research, and creating an exit strategy to support Ethiopia’s self-reliance in humanitarian food assistance. The program remains agile, ready to address acute food insecurity needs in other parts of the country based on guidance from the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (BHA). It is implemented through a consortium whose members include CARE, WVI, FH, MCS, HCS, ORDA & REST with CRS as a consortium leader. JEOP is a multi-year emergency food security assistance program with a huge investment cost of $ 1,000,000,000 over five years.