Targeting transfers - Innovative solutions to familiar problems

The case for targeting cash or in-kind transfers to the poor - that it maxi mises cost-effectiveness and equitable allocation of scarce public resource s - is partially offset by the administrative, social and political costs t hat targeting introduces. This article examines practical applications of t hree alternative targeting mechanisms: self-targeting, individual assessmen t, and group characteristics, It finds that current international 'conventi onal wisdom' - which favours, for example, introducing gender quotas to pub lic works projects and minimising administration costs to maximise transfer s to beneficiaries - often leads to perverse outcomes, which have motivated innovative modifications in specific local contexts.