Sustainability of Impacts of Cash Transfers, Food Transfers, and Behavior Change Communication in Bangladesh

This study assesses the sustainability of impacts, 4 years post-program, from a pilot safety net program that was implemented from May 2012-April 2014. The intervention, called the Transfer Modality Research Initiative (TMRI), was assigned following a cluster-randomized controlled trial design in two zones of Bangladesh (north and south). Intervention arms were assigned at the village level, where arms were as follows: (1) cash transfers \[north and south\]; (2) cash transfers + nutrition behavior communication change (BCC) \[north only\]; (3) food transfers \[north and south\]; (4) food transfers + nutrition BCC \[south only\]; (4) food-cash split \[north and south\]; and (5) control \[north and south\]. Within treatment villages, women living in very poor households were targeted to receive benefits for two years.