UNHCR in Niger launches a project providing access to cash via mobile phones to 2500 Malian refugee households.
Through a public-private partnership with a mobile phone company, UNHCR will provide monthly cash assistance to more than 10,000 refugees over a period of two years in Tabareybarey camp, near the border between Niger and Mali.
The mobile money is a multi-purpose cash grant in line with UNHCR’s Policy on Cash-Based Interventions. Refugees can choose how they spend their money and decide for themselves how best to fulfil the basic needs of their families. Cash also encourages self-reliance while allowing refugees to contribute to the local economy, improving coexistence with the host community.
The programme is part of UNHCR’s strategy in Niger aimed at transforming camps into sustainable settlements of which cash assistance is an important component.
The project is funded by the European Union Directorate General for International Cooperation and Development (DEVCO) and is implemented in coordination with the Nigerien authorities.
UNHCR currently assists over 300,000 persons of concern in Niger, including 57,000 Malian refugees.
For more information on cash assistance in Niger, please contact [email protected].