New Incentives is the world’s only nonprofit organization exclusively focused on conditional cash transfers (CCT), one of the most effective and proven tools to mitigate poverty. This focus allows for the development of next generation CCT programs in close collaboration with independent researchers and policymakers. New Incentives designs CCT programs and implements them by working with established governments and local organizations. Currently, we have supported cash transfers to over 400 households.

New Incentives is the first organization to combine the proven effectiveness of conditional cash transfers and preventing mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of the HIV virus. Each type of intervention has separately been shown to be effective. Extensive research indicates that conditional cash transfer programs can increase utilization of health services and improve child health. Similarly, evidence indicates that providing anti-retroviral drugs to HIV- positive pregnant women at the time of birth drastically reduces the transmission of the virus to the newborn. However, in numerous settings, even though drugs for PMTCT are free and available, many women do not use them. New Incentives believes this provides an unprecedented opportunity to use CCTs to increase PMTCT results by encouraging adoption of local PMTCT services. The key insight is that the cash transfers are only given conditional on the woman satisfying the requirement that she gives birth in a health clinic and takes the anti-retroviral drugs to prevent the transmission of the virus to her newborn.