Urgent assistance to vulnerable food-insecure farmers and GMR-affected and female-headed households in the Gaza Strip. This project aims to urgently respond to the current emerging basic needs among acutely vulnerable farmers (agricultural and poultry), Great March of Return (GMR)-affected households, and female-headed households in order to enhance their access to food and other essential basic goods, as well as restore livelihood capacities through unconditional cash assistance. Through this project, Mercy Corps and Foukhary Association for Country Development (local partner NGO) will target 376 vulnerable households (2,106 individuals) from Khan Younis and Rafah, including 80 female-headed households with limited economic opportunities, 80 households with temporarily or permanently disabled members due to injuries sustained during the GMR, and 216 vulnerable agricultural and poultry farmers from Khan Younis and Rafah. 

Mercy Corps will distribute cash assistance to each household in monthly installments:
 Eligible vulnerable farmers will receive three-installments, $340/installment ($1,020 USD total) 
 Highly vulnerable female-headed households will receive $124/month for four months ($496 USD total)
 Vulnerable GMR-affected households will receive $150/month for four months ($600 USD total).

This urgent cash support will allow vulnerable households to have a flexible, reliable, and timely financial support to address their urgent needs, restore their livelihoods, build resilience and improve agricultural/poultry production cycles female-headed and GMR-affected households will have improved access to food and other essential basic goods for themselves and their dependents.

By utilizing cash as a modality for direct assistance, beneficiaries have greater agency in determining how to meet their own urgent needs, empowering beneficiaries and maintaining their dignity while reducing their vulnerability and contributing to the restoration of their food security. Providing urgent cash support to farmers to restore their livelihood resources as well as to female-headed and GMR-affected households will ensure the most vulnerable households are able to meet their basic food needs, preventing increasing vulnerability and a spiral into deepening poverty. Additionally, in the Gaza Strip, local markets are functional and vendors continue to have adequate stock available therefore, cash assistance to vulnerable households is an appropriate humanitarian response modality to meet critical basic needs.

Through well-defined vulnerability criteria, Mercy Corps, in partnership with Al Foukhary Association for Country Development will identify, assess and verify selected vulnerable households to receive cash assistance, monitor activities, and ensure full coordination and engagement with the community and all relevant stakeholders. Additionally, Mercy Corps will promote community ownership, buy-in, and participation in identifying households that are most in need while also mobilizing key stakeholders to more deeply engage with identified vulnerable households. Throughout project implementation, Mercy Corps will maximize available resources and provide beneficiaries with referrals to available social services and/or aid programming in order to enhance the project’s impact and sustainability, while ensuring continuous communication and information sharing with other relevant actors.