Creating Value Through ICT4D Partnerships
ICT4D in CRS/Haiti
Joseph Junior Sanders, M&E Coordinator/South
Rachel Hermes, Education Coordinator
March 28, 2012
ICT4D Conference
Kigali, Rwanda
Project Background:
Cash for Work
10,798 people (42% women) were
engaged in temporary employment
through the Cash for Work
program, earning a total of
US$ 1.2 million
Paid by delivering envelopes of
money at work sites or within
camps (costly, inefficient and
unsafe)
Project Background: Grand Anse
Relief and Recovery Program
(GRRP)
•After the Grand Anse area of Haiti was affected by
hurricanes and cholera in 2010 and 2011 local authorities
put out a humanitarian appeal to avoid a food crisis in the
near future
•CRS conducted rapid assessment and results showed
sufficient food but people lack purchasing power
•One year emergency food support project (ESFP) using
food vouchers
Challenge for CfW and
GRRP
How to efficiently and securely
transfer money and food vouchers
to program participants?
ICT Solution:
Cash transfers by mobile phone
(1) Cash for Work / T-cash/Voila / evaluation complete
(December 2011)
(2) Food vouchers/ e-vouchers/Digicel / began in February
2012
Hardware/software required for CRS:
• Banking institution
• Internet
• Cell phone service (network)
• Web-based mobile banking application
T-cash steps for program
participants
1.
Attend training on how
the T-cash program
works – CRS and Voila
agents
2. Complete a Know Your
Customer (KyC) form –
submit to bank
3. Activate the account and
receive personal PIN
4. Verify phone number
matches KyC and CRS
form (with CRS)
T-Cash: Staff Support
Key Activities to Complement the T-Cash
Technology:
(1) Developing contracts with service providers
(2) CRS opened a T-cash bank account
(3) Training CfW program participants on how
T-Cash works
T-Cash: Key Benefits
Speed, Security, Cost
T-Cash (659 transfers)
Fonkoze (561 transfers)
Expense Item
Cost (gourdes)
Expense Item
Cost (gourdes)
Transactions*
32,950
Transactions**
20,757
Beneficiary
subsidy per
transaction***
29,655
Vehicle costs,
seven
payrolls****
63,420
Total, T-Cash
62,605
Total, Fonkoze
84,177
“We don’t have to circulate with all
the money in hand…T-cash is
much safer… it’s very confidential”
T-Cash: Key Challenges
•
•
•
•
•
Participants need phones/SIM
Skepticism of new system
Mobile phone network
Account limits ($250)
Voila agents ready for cash-out
T-Cash: Sustainability
• CRS is paying for transactions (sending to
and receipt of) which could impact long-term
usage by CRS; however
• Mobile banking is becoming quite widespread
and profitable in Haiti so the transaction price
will likely decline – and
• CfW participants continue to use their T-cash
account long after CRS stops filling it –
businesses and persons have T-cash
accounts
Context of the evoucher
1. Program participants: 7,000 in Grande Anse
* 1/3 rural without mobile reception
* 1/3 rural with mobile reception
* 1/3 peri-urban with mobile reception (i.e. Jeremie)
2. Program participant phones are NOT required: participant
phones are not necessarily used in the transaction process
3. $50/month is put on the e-Voucher card
CRS would like to enable the program participant to keep a
balance on the e-Voucher account for 60 days.
E voucher steps
1- Register Merchants
2- Manage e-vouchers
3- Redeem e-vouchers
4- Merchants Transfers
5- Reports
1- Register Merchants
AGENT TYPE
QUALIFICATIONS
BRONZE
MERCHANT IS
REGISTERED INTO
MERCHANT PRO
SILVER
GOLD
BRONZE
REQUIREMENTS
PLUS VALID
PATENTE
SILVER
REQUIREMENTS
PLUS BNS BANK
ACCOUNT
MAX. WALLET
EXAMPLE
60,000 HTG
Low-volume
informal
2 HOURS
merchant
200, 000 HTG
1,000, 000 HTG
Medium
volume,
semi formal
merchant
High
volume,
formal
merchant
TRAINING
1 DAY
2 DAYS
Merchant Database
Merchant Information
2- Manage E-voucher
.
E voucher screen
Display voucher
Refill voucher
3- Redeem e-voucher ( 7 transactions)
1
Type *202#
send
5
Please pass the
phone to the
beneficiary to
enter secret PIN
then press send to
ensure privacy
2
3
4
6.Deposit
7. Withdrawal
8. redeem
voucher
Enter voucher
ID
Enter purchase
amount
8 [send]
Answer: 1234
Answer:300
6
7
Please e voucher
PIN to confirm
the payment
Answer: ******
Payment of
300 gdes
receive from
e voucher ID
1234
4. Merchant transfers
5- Reports
Report format
E-voucher: Staff Support
Digicel staff
Record and train the program participants
Record and train the merchants on the system
CRS Staff
The office manager manages the database, refills
the e-voucher and verifies the transaction
E-voucher: Key Benefits
Physical
Electronic
• Cost
• Cost
-
-
-
5 US per voucher, to be printed in
Dominican Republic
At least 3 CRS animators for each fair
Security agent to be paid
• Efficiency
-
10 days of data entry after each fair
One day to serve all the beneficiaries
.60 US cents per transaction,
No one from CRS is needed
No security agent to be paid
• Efficiency
-
No data entry, data available during
transactions
Transaction can be made during the
entire month
E-voucher: Key challenges
-
Dependent upon
telephone network access
- High illiteracy rate
in the rural zone, people may have
difficulty remembering or typing their
PIN number
- Can be time consuming if the
telephone signal is bad
- Due to verification process, vendor
payment time can be long
- No scanner so CRS cannot track
immediately what type of product is
purchased (verify physical forms)
Lessons Learned – mobile money
transfers
• Contract development and negotiation
– Haitian lawyer
• Utilization of knowledgeable
community members to educate
program participants
• Develop effective training materials –
many photos and graphics
Way Forward – mobile money
with CRS/Haiti
• Conduct an evaluation of the e-voucher
program
• Payment to vendors – depends on if
mobile companies can offer higher
amounts
• Possible applications with SILC groups
Mèsi anpil!
Thank you
Merci