Art Appraisal Blog

Payments are central to how governments transfer and receive financial resources; however, the way such payments are made is often not mainstreamed in public financial management (PFM) despite the fact that many of the direct benefits from effective digitalization of payments are identitical to those traditionally expected from strong PFM systems. The digitalization of payments does not provide a silver bullet for solving PFM problems; therefore it needs to be approached in an integrated way, with leadership from central agencies, including the Ministry of Finance, to exploit the synergies between the many different types of payments facilitated by digital technology.

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that countries which have disability identification mechanisms and registries already in place have been in a better position to provide fast relief and expand shock responsive support to persons with disabilities and their families.

How countries can create digital information systems for social protection in a way that is inclusive and right-based, leveraging technology without becoming a further barrier to inclusion?

The report discusses what the LMI segments know, understand, and feel about the COVID-19 outbreak and examines its effect on them. The report also highlights actionable recommendations for policymakers to design suitable interventions that can help the LMI segment cope better in this difficult situation

MSC conducted a research study to assess what the low- and middle-income (LMI) segments in Uganda understand about COVID-19 in terms of awareness, preventive measures being taken, gender dynamics at play in their households, and the use of digital financial services during this time. We present our findings in this report.

The COVID-19 Exclusion Working Group has focused its efforts on improving the design and deployment of emergency social assistance programs to make them work better for women.

This report on awareness, communication, and outreach highlights the need for the integration of key communication components for effective implementation of social protection programs.

The Report "Responsible Practices to Address Seven Major Risks in COVID-19 Digital Financial Transfers" identifies seven heightened risks resulting from the speed and scale of COVID-19 digital transfer responses.

Increasing women's economic empowerment is an important motivation for expanding access to digital financial services for women.

Countries worldwide are using social assistance payments as a component of their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This briefing addresses how donors and their partners can design and implement social assistance payments that are efficient and secure while providing recipients with reliable, convenient, and safe access to their payments.