Lesotho’s Child Grants Programme (CGP) provides cash transfers to reduce
malnutrition, improve health and increase school enrolment among orphans
and vulnerable children. The programme has undergone a major transformation
since it started in 2009: funding has largely been taken over by the government,
and the institutional and operational systems needed for a nationwide
programme are in place. Today, the CGP reaches nearly 20,000 households
and 65,000 children across Lesotho.
At the time of baseline data collection in 2011, beneficiary households received
a quarterly payment of Maloti (M) 360 (about USD36). In April 2013, the transfer
was indexed to the number of children in each household, ranging from M360
for households with one to two children, to M600 (USD60) for households with
three to four children and M750 (USD75) for households with five children or
more. During the study period, payments were not always on schedule.