This presentation, made by Godfrey Mkelemi and David Evans at an IFAD/3ie workshop on May 31, 2016, highlights some of the challenges and successes associated with the evaluation of a pilot conditional cash transfer (CCT) program in Tanzania.

1. Tanzania Third Social Action Fund (TASAF III)
Tuesday, 31 May, 2016
Presentation by Godfrey Mkelemi (Government of Tanzania)
and David Evans (World Bank)

2. 1. CB-CCT description
2. CB-CCT impact evaluation design
3. CB-CCT impact evaluation challenges
4. CB-CCT impact evaluation successes

3. per child (US$3) per month
per adult (US$6) per month
on average

4. Education Health
Children (age 0-5) Visit clinic
6x per year
Children (age 7-15) Be enrolled with
80% attendance
Elderly Visit clinic
1x per year

5. ≈
≈

6. 3 provinces
selected to pilot
Initial Treatment Initial Comparison
80 eligible villages
but only cash for 40
Treatment
2 years later
with additional funding
randomization

7. Health Education
Health insurance Children’s assets

8.  Getting buy-in from the Government team
◦ Training in impact evaluation from the outset
◦ Clear opportunity for RCT (insufficient transfers for all needy
villages)
◦ Strong government involvement at every stage
 Procurement-robust impact evaluation?
◦ Procurement of data collection and implementation took time
◦ Baseline was one year before outset
 Okay with RCT, but adds noise
 Timing for control group roll-out
◦ Delay in final data collection meant short delay in roll-out to
control
◦ Government sought to protect integrity of evaluation

9.  The challenge of getting the political support
required to achieve a successful impact
evaluation. The incorporation of control
communities in the evaluation caused strong
criticism and blames from political leaders (i.e.
members of parliaments, ward councilors and
village chairpersons) and there was a pressure
happening frequently for extending program
benefits to the control villages. TASAF had to
maintain the integrity of evaluation through
communicating with them on the importance and
benefits of the evaluation design.

10.  Following the development of the National Social
Protection Framework and the results of impact
evaluation of the pilot CB-CCT, the Government
decided to create a country wide, permanent
social safety net (the Tanzania Productive Social
Safety Net – PSSN) to operate as a system to
support the poorest and the most vulnerable
through a series of complementary interventions.
 Todate, a total of 1.1 million poor and vulnerable
households with approximately 5.0 million
beneficiaries have been enrolled into the PSSN
program and are receiving program benefits.
These households are from 9,960 villages in all
161 districts in the country. The households are
supported through CCT, PW, COMSP and ID
interventions.

11.  The pilot CB-CCT Program was initiated
in 2009 and covered 5,000 households in
80 selected villages (40 treatment and 40
control villages).
 The pilot program was implemented as a
community -based initiative and a social
fund.
 In 2013, the pilot CB-CCT was scaled up to
Data collectors from Lyampona ‘B’ Village (in Sumbawanga DC) recording information
from identified poor household.

12. Beneficiaries from poor household in Kalunga Village, Heri juu - Kigoma

13.  There are three major impact evaluations in
progress:
 PSSN impact evaluation - by Tanzania Social
Action Fund (TASAF).
 Impact of PSSN on women empowerment - by
Research on Poverty Alleviation (REPOA).
 Impact of PSSN on youth wellbeing and
transition to adulthood – by UNICEF & REPOA.
 Baseline has been completed for all studies
(analysis and write up on progress).

14. Thank you for attention