Unconditional cash transfers currently take place on a bi-monthly basis in 22 districts of Malawi and are delivered ‘over-the-table’ (District teams handover physical Kwacha to recipients on allotted paydays). For the remaining 6 districts of the country, unconditional cash transfers take place on a monthly basis via e-payments.

Currently, the project’s average transfer value per household amounts to MWK 9,000 per month ($9).

Process

In the majority of Districts, payment processes for the Social Cash Transfer Programme (SCTP) are manual e.g. over-the-counter payments at dedicated pay points. District teams communicate a day, every two months, for cash distribution. Recipients then travel to collect cash in-person (or using a designated representative for their household). National ID numbers, and fingerprinting and checking of passbooks are used to ensure distribution goes to the correct recipient.

As of September 2022, six Districts are using e-payments for cash transfer delivery:

The fourteen KfW and EU funded Districts are hoping to transition to e-payments shortly.

It is hoped by mid-end 2023 that all 28 Districts will be using e-payments and mobile money to pay cash transfers, so that there are no manual payments for the SCTP going forward.