Intervention(s)
The implementation of Cohort II of the EIP program is structured to run for 8 months (May 2024-December 2024) and includes the following components:
• Consumption support which targets households from the National Safety Net Programme (NSNP) and poor Non-NSNP households. The Non-NSNP households will receive a consumption stipend of KES 2000 per month for a period of 8 months to smoothen their consumption. Although the payments were meant to be delivered every other month starting in May, due to delays, the payments were made in three installments. The NSNP households will not receive the consumption support because they regularly receive KES 2000 monthly transfer from the existing NSNP programme.
• Asset transfer/Seed Capital provides a financial grant to participants to jump-start an economic activity tailored to their local context and individual or household needs and abilities. Beneficiaries will receive a total of KES 30,000 as asset transfer/seed capital meant to support their livelihoods enhancement. The disbursement was meant to be done in two tranches but due to delays the total was disbursed as one tranche in December 2024.
• Skills Training and Mentorship, which is mandatory for all programme participants and is designed to equip participants with the necessary skills to successfully manage and grow their enterprises. The training is delivered over three months and includes technical and life skills training to enable participants to manage their productive assets, savings, and enterprises. The training is delivered by mentors who are local residents. Each mentor is assigned to guide 50 participants per village (or village cluster) and a mentor supervisor oversees 15 mentors. The mentorship continues throughout the program (until December 31, 2024), with mentors expected to visit each participant weekly, ensuring sustained support and guidance.
• Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLAs) is a group of (10-25) EIP participants who meet regularly to save money and provide loans to one another from their collective savings. Members of the VSLAs are drawn from both individual participants and business group members within the program. The group’s operations, including how savings and loan profits are distributed, are governed by a constitution agreed upon by its members. Each mentor is tasked with overseeing up to three VSLAs, which were formed with the support of mentors in July 2024 after participant enrollment.
Description of the study population
EIP cohort 2 operates in five counties: Kisumu, Marsabit, Makueni, Murang’a and Taita Taveta. Within these counties, the GoK and partners selected 10 sub-counties to be included in the EIP program (2 from each county). The selection of counties and sub counties was done in a participatory process with national and county governments and other relevant stakeholders based on agreed selection criteria that aimed to ensure representation across various agro-ecological and geographical regions, and taking into account poverty levels and vulnerabilities. Although the EIP program is delivered in all 10 sub-counties, the impact evaluation is conducted in 4 of the 5 counties (and thus 8 of the 10 sub-counties). Marsabit is excluded from the impact evaluation due to logistical issues around study design, data collection, and budget constraints.
In each sub-county, the government and implementing partners identified a list of potentially eligible villages (or village clusters) using geographic targeting criteria based on populations and poverty. Within each village or village cluster, the EIP program aimed to reach about 50 eligible households. Villages which are small and hence with a limited number of potential households were merged to create a village cluster that includes about 50 eligible households. The GoK and implementing partners identified several criteria reflecting poverty and vulnerability to identify eligible households, using the Enhanced Single Registry (ESR) database. The ESR includes data on household characteristics (such as education level, and occupation), asset endowment (for example, roof type, wall type, whether the household owns cars, tractors, etc.), and livestock. These indicators were used to undertake Proxy Means Tests (PMTs) to determine poverty status. Households deemed eligible according to the ESR database underwent community validation. The community validation process involved conducting community meetings (Barazas) to confirm whether the targeted households were still residing in the intervention areas and whether their economic situation had improved (which would lead them to no longer be eligible for the program). Once the community validation approves and identifies the list of potential households, potential households go through household-level eligibility and validation process, which involves assessment of household’s preference for EIP participant and ability and potential to conduct a business effectively.