WHEN
This pilot was started in April 2019, the DIF Minimal Viable Product (MVP) will be tested in the final quarter of 2020.
*This Pilot was cancelled due to COVID-19.
WHO IS THE MAIN APPLICANT
Dorcas strives for lasting change for those who live in poverty, are excluded or are caught in a crisis. For this reason, they have been implementing Cash Based Aid (CBA) as part of their activities. Looking for ways to increase impact, they invested their Dutch Relief Alliance innovation funding and will lead the 121 Direct Cash Aid pilot in Ethiopia in the first (* update now moved to Fourth) quarter of 2020.
WHAT HAS BEEN & WILL BE DONE
The 121 pilot consists of two tracks:
1. Human Centered Design (HCD) Track
2. Tech Track
1. HUMAN CENTERED DESIGN TRACK
121 products are designed with the end-users in mind. For the co-design sessions in Ethiopia, these were People Affected and Aid Workers. Since June 2019, 510 is working and co-designing together with:
- Ethiopian Red Cross local representative
- Red een Kind Protection expert
The co-design sessions were conducted with:
- 20 People Affected by internal displacement
- 3 Aid Workers from Dorcas, Red een Kind and Ethiopian Red Cross
The insights from these sessions informed the interfaces and system requirements for the DIF MVP and have been added to all insights gathered as 121 co-designs further across the globe.
2. TECH TRACK
The goal of the 121 system is Direct Cash Aid, which consists of two components. Digital Identity Creation and Cash Aid Distribution.
For the pilot in Ethiopia, the MVP will incorporate both components:
Digital Identity Creation: The MVP is being co-created in a collaboration between Tykn & 510 (An Initiative of the Netherlands Red Cross). Tykn leads the development of the #DigitalIdentityBackend and 510 leads the development of the #121Frontend and integration into the #121System.
Cash Aid Distribution: The MVP is being co-created in a collaboration between Disberse & 510 (An Initiative of the Netherlands Red Cross). Disberse leads the development of the #BackendMoneyflow and 510 leads the development of the #121Frontend and integration into the #121System.
MORE ON COLLABORATING HOs
All the aforementioned work has been designed and developed with the following HO:
Red een Kind
The role of Red een Kind in the Ethiopia Pilot is to set up a general protection referral system framework (to be designed for the system), which can be used in different countries. It will include a list of different protection service providers linked to specific vulnerabilities. This way, people can easily find out where to go when they have a specific vulnerability for which they want to make an appointment at some service provider. They have mapped the protection service providers in Ethiopia, assessing the protection situation and referral pathway for protection issues and linking the system and participating piloting organizations to complementary protection services in the region.
MORE ON 121’S TECH PARTNERS
Tykn’s mission is “Creating a future of opportunity through digital identity. Because people matter.” And that is indeed what they have been working on: bringing privacy, data protection and efficiency to digital identities.
510’s purpose is to “Improve speed, quality & cost-effectiveness of humanitarian aid by using data & digital”. It started 121 in 2017 as a way to reach this purpose. It leverages data science, technology and Human Centered Design to create its products.
Disberse was founded by experienced aid professionals to build a new kind of financial institution for the aid industry. Disberse is working with consortium members to create donation channels for fundraising, with local financial service providers to provide distribution channels in the pilot locations, and with 510 to develop 121 capability to deliver different cash modalities. Currently, Disberse is exploring these potential modalities with local Financial Service Providers (FSPs) to add to the first part of the 121 system in the pilot country in the first quarter of 2020 (Amended timeline TBD)
Read more on this topic here.