Universal Cash Transfer
Vanuatu's Universal Cash Transfer was a national government initiative announced in May 2023 to deliver one-time digital cash payments to roughly 66,000 household heads affected by Tropical Cyclones Judy and Kevin, replacing traditional food-ration and shelter aid. It was to be implemented via Vanuatu Post Limited's blockchain-enabled digital payment app, using national ID registration and Starlink internet to reach remote islands. The program was funded with VT700 million (about US$5.67 million) from the national budget. Despite pilots on Lelepa and Ambrym islands in 2023, as of the most recent public reporting (March 2025) the program had stalled amid political instability and regulatory delays, and no payments had reached affected households.
Blockchain, Digital Cash Transfer, Disaster Relief, Near-Universal, National ID, Pacific Islands, Cyclone Recovery, Vanuatu Post, Stalled Program
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- Government of Vanuatu (Ministry of Finance and Economic Management)
- City
- Port Vila
- State / Province
- Shefa Province
- Country
- Vanuatu
Contact
- Website
- https://doft.gov.vu/
- Social media links
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 66,000
- Funding type
- Government
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Total Amount
- 10,600
- Payment frequency
- Lump Sum
- Distribution Type
- Digital wallet / mobile money via Vanuatu Post digital payment application (planned, no cash had been disbursed as of March 2025)
- Benefit details
Cash was to be delivered via a Vanuatu Post digital payment application rather than physical cash or vouchers, using Starlink satellite internet to reach remote islands with limited connectivity. Based on the VT700 million budget divided across roughly 66,000 target households, the planned disbursement worked out to approximately VT10,000-10,600 (about US$85-90) per household as a one-time payment, an amount local media described as insufficient. Registration required a valid national ID card, and household heads without one were urged to obtain one to participate. As of the most recent reporting (March 2025), the Minister of Finance indicated the allocated VT700 million had instead been redirected to cover public school teachers' outstanding pay claims, and no cash had reached cyclone-affected households more than two years after the cyclones.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
The program targeted heads of the approximately 66,000 households across Vanuatu affected by twin Category 4 Tropical Cyclones Judy and Kevin, which struck 48-72 hours apart in early March 2023 and affected roughly 66% of the national population (about 197,000 people, including 58,000 children). Eligibility was tied to disaster impact and possession (or acquisition) of a national ID card rather than income or demographic means-testing, making it a near-universal disaster response rather than a targeted poverty program. Rollout began with a pilot in Lelepa (about 120 households) and then Ambrym (1,000+ households, ~90 vendors), with plans to expand to Tafea Province and the Shefa Outer Islands (including Epi and Paama). Concerns were raised over whether Ni-Vanuatu seasonal workers in Australia and New Zealand under the RSE scheme, despite holding national IDs, would be excluded from assistance.
Housing
- Housing status
- Displaced
Financial
- Banked status
- Unbanked, Underbanked
Citizenship
- Citizenship / immigration status
- Citizen
Geography
- Countries covered
- Vanuatu
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Application Process
- How to apply
Affected household heads were asked to provide their ID details to joint NGO/government registration teams conducting in-person registration island-by-island, beginning with a pilot on Lelepa Island and then Ambrym in mid-2023, with planned expansion to Tafea Province and the Shefa Outer Islands. Households without a valid national ID card were urged to obtain one through Vanuatu's Civil Registration and Identification office in order to register in the digital transaction system managed by Vanuatu Post Limited. No further phases of registration or a working application portal were confirmed as launched in subsequent public reporting.
- Selection process
Selection was based on residing in a household affected by Tropical Cyclones Judy and Kevin and being verified through in-person registration cross-checked against national ID records. Verified household records were to be uploaded into the Vanuatu Post Limited database, after which the final steps were a no-objection letter from the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu, Central Tenders Board clearance, and Council of Ministers sign-off before disbursement. No detailed means-testing or additional selection criteria beyond disaster impact and ID verification have been documented in public reporting.
