Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP)
Basic Information
Country
Geographic area
Programme type
Population group
Children, Elderly persons, Persons with disabilities, Women, Mother, Pregnant, Lactating women
Programme Details
Programme objectives
To reduce short-term poverty and develop long-term human capital.
Thorne, K., J.E. Taylor, J. Kagin, B. Davis, R. Darko Osei, and I. Osei. 2014. Local Economy-wide Impact
Evaluation (LEWIE) of Ghana’s Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programme. Rome: FAO.
Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/3/a-i3814e.pdf>.
Start date
2008
Thorne, K., J.E. Taylor, J. Kagin, B. Davis, R. Darko Osei, and I. Osei. 2014. Local Economy-wide Impact
Evaluation (LEWIE) of Ghana’s Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programme. Rome: FAO.
Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/3/a-i3814e.pdf>.
Conditionalities (if any)
The LEAP transfer is unconditional for people over 65 years old and
people with disabilities. Conversely, households with orphaned
and vulnerable children (OVC) must adhere to conditionalities such
as: school enrolment and attendance for children; birth registration
of newborn babies and post-natal checks; vaccination of children
under 5 years; and household commitment to avoid children
undertaking labour activities.
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2013. Qualitative research and analyses of the economic
impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana Country Case Study Report.
Rome: FAO. Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/p2p/Publications/
Ghana_qualitative.pdf>.
Coverage
145,000 households (in December 2015)
Programme expenditure
GHS80 million (2015)
Targeting and eligiblity
Targeting methods
Proxy Means Test
Categorical Targeting
Geographical Targeting
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2013. Qualitative research and analyses of the economic
impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana Country Case Study Report.
Rome: FAO. Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/p2p/Publications/
Ghana_qualitative.pdf>.
Targeted areas
About 165 districts
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2013. Qualitative research and analyses of the economic
impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana Country Case Study Report.
Rome: FAO. Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/p2p/Publications/
Ghana_qualitative.pdf>.
Target groups
Elderly people (over 65 years old), people with disabilities,
OVC and pregnant women/children less than 1 year old.
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2013. Qualitative research and analyses of the economic
impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana Country Case Study Report.
Rome: FAO. Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/p2p/Publications/
Ghana_qualitative.pdf>.
Eligibility criteria
Households are eligible for LEAP if they are considered poor and have
a household member who is: a single parent with an OVC; an elderly
person (over 65 years old); a person with a disability and who is
unable to work; a pregnant woman; or a child below 1 year of age.
Thorne, K., J.E. Taylor, J. Kagin, B. Davis, R. Darko Osei, and I. Osei. 2014. Local Economy-wide Impact
Evaluation (LEWIE) of Ghana’s Livelihood Empowerment Against Poverty (LEAP) Programme. Rome: FAO.
Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/3/a-i3814e.pdf>.
Coverage and other information
Type of benefits
Cash and health insurance.
Amount of benefits
The LEAP transfer ranges from a minimum of GHS32 per beneficiary per
month to a maximum of GHS53 for four or more dependents per month.
Payment/delivery frequency
Bi-monthly
Food and Agriculture Organization. 2013. Qualitative research and analyses of the economic
impacts of cash transfer programmes in sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana Country Case Study Report.
Rome: FAO. Accessed 11 November 2015. <http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/p2p/Publications/
Ghana_qualitative.pdf>.
Benefit delivery mechanism
National postal service agency (Ghana Post)
Benefit recipients
Household caregiver
Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and frequency
Programme monitoring is conducted quarterly
