Estimating Aswesuma Effectiveness

Series:Poverty and Social Welfare Research Series

The Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka (IPS) will launch its latest publication, Estimating the Effectiveness of Aswesuma, authored by Dr Pulasthi Amarasinghe. The study presents an ex-ante evaluation of the Aswesuma cash transfer programme, introduced in response to Sri Lanka’s 2022 economic crisis. It assesses the programme’s ability to accurately identify poor and vulnerable households through its multidimensional targeting criteria and predicts the impact of Aswesuma transfers on food insecurity, indebtedness, and labour force participation. The study simulates several alternative targeting approaches—including disaster exposure and household expenditure levels—to identify ways to improve programme coverage and effectiveness.