Novissi – Programme de Revenu Universel de Solidarité
Novissi (meaning "solidarity" in Éwé) is Togo's fully digital unconditional cash transfer program, launched in April 2020 by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Digital Transformation to support informal-sector workers whose incomes were disrupted by COVID-19 lockdowns. Recipients registered via a USSD short code (*855#) using their national voter ID card and received payments directly to a mobile money account, with women receiving a higher monthly amount than men to help offset gender inequality. The program was funded by Togo's National Solidarity and Economic Recovery Fund, a grant from the French Development Agency, and a partnership with the U.S. nonprofit GiveDirectly, which financed a rural expansion that used AI and satellite-based poverty targeting. By March 2021, Novissi had disbursed roughly US$24 million to more than 800,000 beneficiaries, making it one of the first large-scale, fully contactless digital cash transfer programs in the world.
COVID-19 emergency relief, Digital cash transfer, Mobile money, AI/satellite poverty targeting, Gender-differentiated payments, USSD registration, GiveDirectly partnership, West Africa
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Ministry of Digital Economy and Digital Transformation (Government of Togo)
- City
- Lomé
- State / Province
- Maritime
- Country
- Togo
Contact
- Website
- https://novissi.gouv.tg/
- Phone
- +228 22 21 10 00
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 819,972
- Funding type
- Government, Nonprofit, Philanthropic
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Payment frequency
- Biweekly
- How long the program lasts
- 12 months
- Distribution Type
- Mobile money (Flooz, T-Money)
- Benefit details
The base transfer approximated 30% of Togo's monthly minimum wage; women received 12,250 FCFA (~US$22.64)/month and men received 10,500 FCFA (~US$19.41)/month, paid in two installments per month directly to the beneficiary's mobile money wallet. A parallel GiveDirectly-funded rural expansion (Oct 2020–2021) paid women 8,620 FCFA (~US$15.50)/month and men 7,450 FCFA (~US$13)/month for approximately six months. Actual duration of payments varied by beneficiary, tied to how long their canton/prefecture remained under COVID-19 lockdown or state of emergency, so total lifetime benefit amounts were not fixed. Funds were credited automatically once eligibility was verified — no in-person visit was ever required.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Beneficiaries had to be Togolese citizens residing in Togo, hold a national voter ID card, be at least 18 years old, and be informal-sector workers (e.g., taxi drivers, hairdressers, street vendors, tailors, retailers) whose livelihoods were affected by COVID-19 restrictions. Eligibility was initially restricted to residents of prefectures/cantons under lockdown or curfew, later expanding to the entire adult population of some hard-hit cantons (e.g., Soudou). A separate GiveDirectly-financed extension targeted extreme poverty (estimated consumption under US$1.25/day) among residents of the 200 poorest cantons in Togo, identified using satellite imagery and mobile phone metadata rather than self-declared informal-worker status.
Demographics
- Minimum age
- 18
- Gender
- Male, Female
- Language
- French, English
Financial
- Employment status
- Gig / Informal, Unemployed
- Banked status
- Unbanked, Underbanked
Citizenship
- Citizenship / immigration status
- Citizen
Geography
- Countries covered
- Togo
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Participation
- Research / data sharing
- Optional
- Research / participation requirements
Registrants were required to consent to their personal data being used for Novissi program administration. Separately, academic partners (UC Berkeley's CEGA, Northwestern University's Global Poverty Research Lab, University of Mannheim, and Innovations for Poverty Action) conducted independent research using aggregated mobile phone, satellite, and program data to evaluate the effectiveness of AI/satellite-based targeting versus traditional methods; some beneficiaries participated in follow-up phone surveys. Key findings were published in Nature (2022), "Machine learning and phone data can improve targeting of humanitarian aid," and in IPA/CEGA case studies and working papers.
Application Process
- How to apply
Applicants dial the toll-free USSD code *855# from any mobile phone (a smartphone was not required, and phones could be borrowed). The prompts ask the user to enter their 19-digit voter ID number (with dashes), the NSF security code printed on the voter ID card, and their surname as printed on the card, then to confirm consent to share personal data for the program. Eligible applicants receive an SMS confirmation and their designated mobile money account (Flooz or T-Money) is credited automatically once approved; a toll-free call center was also available for questions and complaints.
- Selection process
In the initial urban phase, eligibility was verified automatically by cross-referencing the applicant's voter ID against Togo's national voter registry (which included self-declared occupation and home location), restricted to informal workers in locations under a declared COVID-19 state of emergency. For the rural expansion financed by GiveDirectly, selection combined self-registration with machine-learning-based poverty targeting developed with UC Berkeley's Center for Effective Global Action, Northwestern University, the University of Mannheim, and Innovations for Poverty Action — using satellite imagery and mobile phone metadata to rank the poorest cantons and prioritize the poorest individuals within them for eligibility.
