Episode 8: CVA- catching up with people on the move in the Americas

Situations of violence, conflicts, socioeconomic crises, and natural disasters are some of the multiple causes of the current increase in human mobility. This trend will continue to grow due to the accelerated deterioration of highly populated regions caused by climate change, and it is even estimated that this global phenomenon threatens to displace 200 million people by 2050.   

The Americas region is a living example of this reality. After Syria, the displacement of Venezuelans is the second largest human movement worldwide; migration from and through Central America to the north continues to have a significant upward trend. One sign of this is that, as of the end of 2020, nearly 900,000 people from Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador were forcibly displaced within their countries and throughout the region.   

Given this context, this episode of CashCast our panel of experts explores a series of questions, including:  

• What are the problems that Cash and Voucher Assistance actors should be resolving around human mobility?
• How can we start to consider different populations according to their distinctive attributes, so that we can provide the most effective solutions?
• What changes are needed in the way that CVA is delivered so that interventions do not inadvertently increase the vulnerability of people on the move?

The host and guests are: 

• Holly Welcome Radice (host) – Regional Representative – Americas, the CALP Network. 
• Paula Gil Baizan – Independent consultant.
• Lucia Steinberg – Global Cash and Voucher Assistance specialist – Danish Refugee Council. 

We invite you to listen in on this fascinating and in-depth conversation. 

The idea for this episode of the CashCast emerged from this recent study People are on the move: can the world of CVA keep up? Analysis of the use of CVA in the context of human mobility in the Americas, commissioned by the CALP Network. To learn even more take a look at the study and associated resources.  

The CashCast is an occasional podcast from the CALP Network that looks in depth at the critical debates in humanitarian cash and voucher assistance (CVA). 

This podcast is made possible by the generous support of the American people through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The contents are the responsibility of the CALP Network and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States Government.