Improving Women’s Position in the Household: Evidence from a Maternity Cash Transfer Programme in India

The impacts of cash transfers on women empowerment vary significantly with transfer context and design, including beneficiary targeting, transfer magnitude, timing, and conditions. Our study contributes to this literature by examining a maternal cash transfer programme in India where pregnant and lactating women received a substantial amount of money, in instalments, after fulfilling conditions related to maternal and infant health which required visits to public health centres. Using a matched-pair difference-in-differences design, we find that the programme reduced Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), particularly physical violence and subsequent injuries. Additionally, we find increases in women’s participation in household decision-making, physical mobility, interaction with peers and health workers, economic standing, healthcare access, and less tolerant attitudes towards IPV, which not only indicate an improvement in women’s position in the household but are also pathways for reduced IPV. Also, we document positive effects on the birth registration and primary education only for female children of eligible women.