Lebanon: Emergency Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (EMPCA) Guidelines

Country: Lebanon Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees Please refer to the attached file. Executive Summary The Emergency Multi-Purpose Cash Assistance (EMPCA) Guidelines establish a harmonized, interagency framework to enable a rapid, coordinated, and scalable cash response to populations affected by conflict escalation in Lebanon. Developed by the CWG EMPCA Task Team, the guidelines align humanitarian and national systems to ensure coherence across actors and population groups. EMPCA is positioned as a cash-first intervention, providing timely and flexible assistance to support households in meeting immediate basic needs while reducing reliance on negative coping strategies. The approach is inclusive and cross-population, with Lebanese households supported through the national Shock Responsive Social Safety Net, and non-Lebanese populations assisted by UN agencies, NGOs, and local partners. The framework is grounded in key principles of transparency in targeting, proportional data collection, complementarity with sectoral responses, and inclusion across gender, age, and diversity dimensions. Activation of EMPCA is led by the Government of Lebanon in coordination with the CWG, based on predefined triggers such as displacement, active conflict, and reduced household capacity to meet basic needs. The response can be activated at national, sub national, or local levels depending on severity, geographic scope, market conditions, and operational access. The current transfer value is set at USD 20 per household member, capped at five members, with an additional USD 45 per household, delivered monthly for up to three months. This value is benchmarked against the Survival Minimum Expenditure Basket and will be periodically reviewed by the CWG in line with market trends, household needs...

Original source: Relief Web