Impact of cash transfer on food accessibility and calorie-intake in Pakistan

This paper evaluates the impact of unconditional cash transfers (UCT) on the indicators of food accessibility in the urban and rural areas of Pakistan. Previous empirical evidences show poor food security in the country; however, there is lack of literature on this investigation in the context of UCT specifically the highest coverage providing social assistance programme that is the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP). Examining the impact on calorie intake can help policy makers understand how households spend this additional source of income and address effectively concerns regarding food security. Propensity score matching (PSM) technique is used to analyse the latest nationally representative data. Being a recipient of the UCT is found to be significant in explaining the outcome indicator of food accessibility. Disaggregation into food groups show that recipient households increase their consumption of calories from cereals and pulses, vegetables and sugary products. Although there is evidence to support the positive and significant effects of being a recipient, the effects are small. The results indicate that the households remain vulnerable due to the small amount of transfer.