Cash and Voucher Assistance (CVA) continues to attract growing interest as a modality for the delivery of humanitarian assistance in the Pacific region. The use of CVA by humanitarian partners, alongside other modalities, supports people affected by disasters in an efficient, effective, and flexible manner across all stages of the disaster management cycle. CVA strengthens local economies by supporting markets and livelihoods, contributing to long-term recovery and sustainability in a dignified manner. It also expands opportunities to mainstream gender and disability inclusion through targeted approaches, fostering integrated, inclusive recovery, resilience, and peacebuilding efforts. The use of CVA as an assistance modality by humanitarian and development actors has been established in the Pacific since 2009.
The Pacific Regional Cash Working Group (PRCWG) aims to improve the quality and effectiveness of humanitarian assistance by shaping CVA policy and practice, serving as a regional knowledge and coordination platform, and promoting collaboration among stakeholders. The PRCWG functions as a regional resource base for knowledge sharing, research curation, stakeholder mapping, capacity assessments, and training initiatives. It seeks to strengthen regional CVA collaboration in both preparedness and response, enhance financial inclusion, and promote linkages between humanitarian CVA, social protection systems, and other market-based or economic inclusion programming involving cash or voucher transfers.
Under its new structure, OCHA will lead and coordinate non-programmatic activities, ensuring alignment with broader Pacific Humanitarian Team (PHT) frameworks, while WFP Pacific will lead all programmatic activities of the PRCWG. This includes technical guidance, operational coordination, and capacity strengthening, supported by ADRA South Pacific. The Australia Assists Cash Specialist deployee, hosted by WFP Pacific, leads the overall programmatic role for the PRCWG, ensuring coherence of programmatic priorities and delivery across the region.
The PRCWG forms part of the Pacific Humanitarian architecture, providing evidence-based inputs and recommendations to inform strategic and technical decision-making. It reports to the Pacific Humanitarian Team (PHT) Principals and works closely with Clusters and partners to mainstream CVA across sectoral and cross-cutting areas. The PRCWG comprises over 50 members representing national and international humanitarian and development agencies, governments, donors, and private sector organizations.
Looking ahead, the PRCWG will anchor its collective efforts in the Pacific Cash Strategic Workplan 2026–2028, ensuring alignment with regional humanitarian and development priorities and reinforcing its commitment to coordinated, inclusive, and effective cash programming across the Pacific.
Brief info:
The Pacific Regional Cash Working Group (PRCWG) Workplan 2026–2028 sets out a shared vision to strengthen cash and voucher assistance (CVA) across the Blue Pacific region. Developed collaboratively by regional partners, the work plan focuses on strengthening coordination, preparedness, and local leadership in cash assistance.
Over the next three years, the PRCWG will enhance regional collaboration, promote learning, and ensure that cash is a safe, efficient, and effective tool to support people affected by disasters. The workplan also aims to deepen partnerships with governments, humanitarian organisations, and financial service providers to make CVA more accessible and inclusive for all.
By investing in stronger systems, shared knowledge, and local capacity, the PRCWG is helping to shape a more resilient and connected Pacific. The Workplan 2026–2028 represents a collective commitment to ensure that cash assistance continues to meet the evolving needs of communities and contributes to a faster, more dignified recovery when crises strike.
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The Pacific Regional Cash Working Group (PRCWG) Workplan 2026–2028 sets out a shared vision to strengthen cash and voucher assistance (CVA) across the Blue Pacific region. Developed collaboratively by regional partners, the work plan focuses on…
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Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) “The Minimum Expenditure Basket (MEB) is defined as what a household requires in order to meet basic needs – on a regular or seasonal basis – and its average cost.” What is it? The MEB…
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I . Introduction & Objectives Background The Pacific region, characterized by its diverse and dispersed geographical nature, faces unique challenges in responding to humanitarian crises. The Pacific Regional Cash Working Group (PRCWG), functioning under the Pacific Humanitarian Team…
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1. SUMMARY PACIFIC CONTEXT The Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) are home to 10 million people and comprise 530,000 km2 of land spread over an area that is more than 15 percent of the earth’s surface. The…
If your organization/your partners/country offices/Cluster have implemented/are implementing Cash or Voucher Assistance in Pacific Region, please fill and submit PRCWG CVA 5Ws Matrix 2022 Excel Sheet to Ali.Mansoor@wfp.org
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Please see the attached infographic.
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The 2026 Pacific CVA capacity snapshot provides the evidence base and strategic logic for the PRCWG Workplan 2026–2028. It confirms that the region has strong interest and basic awareness of CVA but lacks the technical depth,…
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The Pacific Regional Cash Working Group (PRCWG) Workplan 2026–2028 sets out a shared vision to strengthen cash and voucher assistance (CVA) across the Blue Pacific region. Developed collaboratively by regional partners, the work plan focuses on…
If you are a donor, INGO, UN agency, National organization, or government office implementing Cash and Voucher Assistance and want to share it with the Pacific cash community of practice, contact pacific.rcwg@gmail.com
Visit PRCWG CVA Interactive Dashboards and Mapping for more maps
If you are a Cash and Voucher Assistance Trainer and based in the Pacific, please write to us at rukiye.uysal@wfp.org
