Unpacking a Multi-faceted Program to Build Sustainable Income for the Very Poor.

Abhijit Banerjee, Dean Karlan, Robert Darko Osei, Hannah Trachtman, and Christopher Udry.

ABSTRACT

A multi-faceted program comprising a grant of productive assets, training, coaching, and savings has been found to build sustainable income for those in extreme poverty. Authors focus on two important questions: whether a mere grant of productive assets would generate similar impacts (it does not), and whether access to a savings account and a deposit collection service would generate similar impacts (it does not).