Baby's First Years

Program overview

  • Reducing childhood poverty: Unconditional cash transfers to low-income mothers aim to decrease childhood poverty. By increasing families’ monthly income, the initiative stabilizes children’s early environment and provides greater opportunities for early childhood brain development.

  • Providing monthly cash transfers: As part of the Baby’s First Years model, low-income new mothers receive a monthly cash transfer of $333, which represents (on average) a 20 percent increase to their income at the time of program enrollment. These cash transfers are funded by private foundations and are distributed by the research team via a debit card.

  • Supporting a child’s first six years: To stabilize low-income mothers’ budgets and children’s home environments, cash transfers are provided unconditionally on a monthly basis. Cash transfers continue until the baby turns 6, since the first four years of a baby’s life represent a time of rapid brain growth and high adaptability. Cash transfers are provided via a debit card.

A single study with a rigorous design suggests that cash transfers are a promising strategy for supporting childhood brain development.

  • A 2022 randomized controlled trial found that children of mothers who received cash transfers showed different brain activity, relative to children in the control group. The type of brain activity observed in children in the treatment group is associated with the development of greater cognitive skills.

  • Recruit mothers proactively: Baby’s First Years mothers were recruited in postpartum wards. While recruiting, program staff should detail the timeline of the cash transfers and explain that the cash transfers are unconditional. Program staff should also explain that the cash transfers will not impact the mothers’ existing public benefits. Enrolling mothers on-site ensures greater program up-take.

  • Consider the method of payment: An overview of cash transfer programs found that offering flexible payment options can make benefits more accessible to families (in particular those who do not have access to a bank account). The most popular option was a no-fee debit card, which was more secure than cash and did not require a bank account to use.

  • Provide sustainable but impactful cash transfers: An evaluation found that children of mothers who received the larger cash transfer saw greater change in brain activity than children of mothers who received the smaller transfer. Facing limited funds, local leaders considering implementing a similar program should prioritize a smaller, but more generous program over a larger but less impactful one.

  • Evaluate to secure long-term political feasibility: Providing unconditional cash transfers can be politically controversial. To secure public and stakeholder buy-in, local leaders should consider starting with a pilot program, and/or conducting a rigorous evaluation to demonstrate the impact of cash transfers on the wellbeing of their residents.