EMPO
Request a consultation
Organisation & Finance10 November 2026EMPO

Cash management in insecure contexts

How to hold, move and account for cash safely when banks are limited and risks are high: risk mapping, storage, counts, transfers and who to involve.

Short answer

Start by mapping how cash flows through your organisation and where it is most exposed. Then reduce cash use, keep balances small, store cash in a locked safe under dual control, count and reconcile it often, vary routes and timing for any transfer, limit who knows, and decide in advance that no one should risk their life to protect cash. Finance and security staff should plan together.

Key points

  • Map the cash flow first, then protect the riskiest points.
  • Use banks, mobile money or vendors when possible, and hold less cash.
  • Keep cash in a locked safe with two key holders, and count it often.
  • Vary routes and times, tell few people, and never use predictable patterns.
  • No one should risk their safety to protect cash. Write this rule down.

Why is cash a special risk?

In many places in Myanmar, banks have withdrawal limits, branches may be far away, or electronic payment is not available to suppliers and staff. Teams may still need to pay wages, rent or local vendors in cash. Good Practice Review 8 on humanitarian security risk management says that withdrawing or moving large amounts of cash makes aid workers vulnerable to robbery, and that travelling with cash in remote or conflict-affected areas raises the risk of being targeted.

Cash is a security issue as well as a finance issue. A good policy protects people first, then money.

What is the first step?

Map your cash flow. GPR 8 recommends a risk assessment of the flow of cash around the organisation, then measures at the points of highest risk. Draw a simple chain:

  1. Where does money enter? Bank withdrawal, transfer agent, donor funds.
  2. Where is it stored? Office safe, field office, staff home.
  3. Who moves it, how and how often?
  4. Where is it spent? Wages, vendors, distributions.
  5. Who counts and records it?

Mark each step: low, medium or high risk. Focus first on withdrawals, transport and field storage.

How can you reduce exposure?

GPR 8 lists five practical directions: reduce the use of cash, use discretion, reduce exposure to loss or theft, reduce predictability and reduce vulnerability when using cash. Turn them into rules:

  • Use less cash. Pay wages and large invoices by bank or mobile transfer where it is safe and legal. Ask suppliers if they can accept transfers.
  • Hold less cash. Request only what you need for a short period. CARE's toolkit sets physical cash limits and caps cash floats for purchases.
  • Be discreet. Do not talk about cash movements in public places, social media or open messaging groups.
  • Be unpredictable. Change withdrawal days, times, routes and vehicles.
  • Protect the site. Choose storage that is secure and not obvious from outside.

How should you store and count cash?

CARE and UNDP guidance agree on the basics:

  • Keep cash in a locked box inside a safe or locked cabinet. Keep pre-numbered receipt books locked too.
  • Use dual control: two people hold keys or codes, and one person alone cannot open the safe.
  • Count cash and reconcile it to the cash book on a fixed schedule. CARE requires at least weekly counts and a count at every handover. UNDP guidance asks for surprise counts, at least monthly, by a senior person not responsible for the cash records.
  • Hold the person responsible accountable for differences, and report any theft or loss at once.
  • Do not mix office cash with personal money, and do not store cash at home.

Appoint a cash custodian who is not the team leader. CRS advises this so that the team leader is not tied down in daily records and there is an independent check.

How do you move cash more safely?

Moving cash is the riskiest step. If you cannot avoid it:

  1. Ask first: can it be done another way? Use a bank transfer, a reliable money transfer service or a vendor payment.
  2. Limit who knows. Only the people needed know the amount, time and route.
  3. Use two or three people. Where practical, split the cash between carriers, using different routes.
  4. Vary routes and timing. Do not repeat the same pattern.
  5. Use company transport. Avoid public transport in cities where possible.
  6. Plan for delays. Know where the cash will be kept safely overnight if travel stops.
  7. Have a safe ready on arrival. Cash should not sit in a car, hotel room or open office.
  8. Document the handover. Each transfer needs a signed record of who handed over, who received and the amount.
  9. Agree the rule on attack. Staff must not risk their lives to protect cash. State this in writing and brief everyone.

What about cash used in programmes?

Cash for recipients adds more risk. People collecting cash may be targeted, and distribution sites need security. GPR 8 notes that using banks and other financial institutions can reduce the security risk of transfers, and that organisations should assess programme risks before and during cash programmes. If you run cash assistance, read our guide on managing risks in cash programmes.

What records and approvals do you need?

Keep a cash book, receipts, count sheets signed by two people and transfer forms. Link them to your financial policies. See financial policies every NGO needs. In the policy, write the maximum cash on hand, who may carry cash, who authorises it and what to do if a payment cannot follow normal rules.

Review the plan whenever the context changes: new checkpoints, bank closures, unrest or a change in the use of mobile money. Do not record sensitive route or timing details in widely shared files.

How EMPO can help

EMPO is a trusted, Myanmar-based training and consultancy provider and one of the country's leading names in practical NGO training, with 1,200+ people trained and 15 partner organisations. We deliver budget management and cash and voucher assistance training in English and Burmese, online and in person across Myanmar, from our base in Yangon. See our services or contact us.

Sources

Questions people ask

Who is responsible for cash security, finance or security staff?

Both. Good Practice Review 8 says mitigation measures should ideally be decided and carried out together by security and finance staff.

How often should we count cash?

CARE's emergency toolkit requires cash counts at least weekly and whenever responsibility for the cash changes hands. Many organisations count more often when balances are high.

Is it safe to talk about cash movements on the phone or by message?

Avoid it. Share cash movement details only with the few people who need them, and avoid open channels. UNDP guidance advises limiting information and using coded or encrypted communication where possible.

All insights