Enabling Social Benefit Delivery through
Digital Public Infrastructure
A case from Odisha, India where MuktaSoft enhanced social benefits delivery and empowered self-help groups
Overview
Delivering social benefits directly to individuals or households is crucial for financial inclusion, empowering vulnerable communities, fostering social stability, and building trust in public institutions. However, governments often face challenges such as limited administrative capacity, information gaps, and payment friction, leading to delays.
The Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) approach addresses these issues effectively, offering a scalable and user-friendly solution that overcomes the limitations of traditional methods in scalability, ease of use, and data integrity.
Objective
MUKTA, an initiative under the Urban Wage Employment Initiative (UWEI), was launched by the Government of Odisha on April 18, 2020, to generate employment opportunities in urban areas during the COVID-19 pandemic. It leverages community-based organizations (CBOs) to implement ecologically sustainable public works projects like paving roads, constructing drains, rainwater harvesting, and rejuvenating water bodies.
To ensure efficient administration, the initiative adopted a digital platform, easing the workload on Urban Local Body (ULB) staff, ensuring timely payments to beneficiaries, and verifying project completions.
Product
MUKTASoft
Reduction in payment disbursement time for workers, and CBOs.
+70%
Date
March 25, 2024
Average increase in payment success rate.
+67%
Practice Area
Public Finance
Growth in approved estimates in the last 6 months.
+39%
The Challenges
Burden of manual processes
In 30 cities, the tax collection systems were paper-based, in 77 outdated technology, and scalability issues in 3 due to multiple vendors. Integration difficulties with discrepancies in managing registers added to inefficiencies.
Delayed payments
Delays in eligibility validation resulted in deviations from the specified payment timelines. This led to late payments for CBOs and wage seekers, disrupting the program’s implementation.
Data inaccessibility
Stakeholders faced difficulties accessing comprehensive and comprehensible information, leading to duplication of effort.
Inaccurate fund information
Delayed or inaccurate information on fund allocation and utilization hindered efficient decision-making.
Solutions
Multi-layered Architecture
The platform enhances transparency and decision-making by providing seamless data flow and removing data silos, promoting effective coordination among stakeholders.
Configurable and Reusable
It adapts to both ULBs’ and state-specific requirements, and workflows through a template-based approach for creating and issuing documents increasing operational efficiency.
Interoperability
The solution integrates with various applications and uses shared data registries to ensure a single source of truth, optimizing project execution and data consistency.
Training and Capacity Building
Extensive training sessions for Urban Local Bodies and CBOs improve proficiency in using the platform, covering all essential tasks from work orders to attendance tracking.
Simplifying to amplify
MUKTASoft, built on the DIGIT platform, simplifies MUKTA scheme implementation by streamlining transactions, tracking project lifecycles, and ensuring accurate wage disbursements. Utilising smart payment principles, it facilitates the enrollment of wage seekers into projects, monitors attendance, ensures timely payments for completed work, and offers a user-friendly interface for government stakeholders to oversee progress, budget use, and potential risks.
