Ultra Poor Graduation Pilot in Honduras

Can an intensive package of support lift the ultra poor out of extreme poverty to a more stable state? This 24-month program provides beneficiaries with a holistic set of services including: livelihood trainings, productive asset transfers, consumption support, savings plans, and healthcare. By investing in this multifaceted approach, the program strives to eliminate the need for long-term safety net services. Spanning seven countries on three continents, the Ultra Poor Graduation program is being piloted around the globe. IPA is conducting randomized evaluations in India, Pakistan, Honduras, Peru, Ethiopia, Yemen, and Ghana to understand the impact of this innovative model.

Policy Issue:

Governments have often attempted to address the needs of the ultra poor by offering consumption support that is costly and offers no clear pathway out of food insecurity. The Ultra Poor Graduation Pilots attempt to apply a model, developed by BRAC in Bangladesh, which recognizes that the ultra poor need the "breathing space" that is provided by temporary consumption support, but that public funds may be better used to build households’ capacities to maintain a sustainable livelihood. The idea is that this initial assistance, lasting two years, will place households securely on the first rung of the development ladder, which they can then climb with the help of appropriate development strategies. The model incorporates a comprehensive package of services: a productive asset (such as chickens or goats), consumption support, livelihood trainings, healthcare, and financial services. Ideally this wide set of support services will help households to weather any shocks they may face along during their climb out of ultra poverty.

This project is a part of a set of evaluations, in partnership with CGAP and the Ford Foundation, that intends to determine whether the model, pioneered in Bangladesh, is effective in a range of contexts. 

As the second poorest country in Central America, Honduras suffers from a disparate distribution of wealth with about 60% of its population living below the poverty line[1]. The economy is centered around exports such as bananas and coffee, crops that are susceptible to weather fluctuations.   To aid households struggling to generate income, ODEF and Plan Honduras have joined together to implement the Mejoramiento Integral de la Familia Rural (MIRE).

Ultra Poor households earning less than 600 Lempiras (about $30 US) each month are identified with a Participatory Wealth Ranking (PWR) during which villagers rate the economic status of all members of the community.  Eligible households are randomly assigned either a treatment or comparison group.  Treatment households receive consumption support in the form of a family garden  and training in two income generating activities including raising livestock (chicken or pigs) and growing crops (bananas or vegetables) production, or operating a pulperia (small grocery store). Participants are monitored throughout the process. 

Female heads of households are required to open a savings account at ODEF and are randomly assigned to one of two savings treatments.  One savings group is incentivized with savings matching biannually equal to 50% of the average account balance while a second treatment group receives monthly direct savings transfers. Both of these treatment groups receive savings incentives valued at 400 Lempiras (about $20 US).

By comparing ultra poor households in treatment villages who do not receive the program with those in pure comparison villages, the study is designed to measure spillover effects. IPA is also conducting qualitative research, consisting of interviews on life histories, family dynamics, and cultural traditions, to better understand the mechanisms by which the program functions.

Forthcoming.

For additional information on the Ultra Poor Graduation Pilots, click here.