The Government of Zambia has been running a set of pilot cash transfers to test which could best form the basis of a national social protection system. The pilot being run in the Katete district transfers money to everyone over the age of 60 years, thus creating a form of social pension.

This brief outlines the perceptions of recipients, their families and the community towards the pension, and the impacts which have been observed on areas such as nutrition, health, education and the local economy. It also outlines the practical benefits and challenges of implementing the scheme.

It finds that, while some technical issues remain, the model being used in Katete is a popular, administratively simple and cost-effective option to scale up to national level.