Over the last 20 years, more than 100 countries have decided to implement social safety nets, targeted at the poorest and most vulnerable. Impact evaluations have shown the effectiveness of these programmes, and policy makers have been exploring different methods of delivery, including cash transfers. This book offers the first systematic discussion of the design and implementation of poverty reduction schemes, and cash transfer programmes in particular.

The book offers an operational guide for key stakeholders, officials and students in understanding the design, implementation, and monitoring and evaluation of cash transfer programmes. The authors also draw on their own practical experience and present global case studies in order to show the effects that these decisions have on operations and outcomes.