Lecture 6

 Social Protection Programs

i. Types of social protection

ii. Labour market interventions
iii. Social insurance

iv. Social assistance

v. Social security
 What is social protection?

 Social protection, is concerned with preventing, managing, and

overcoming situations that adversely affect people's well-being
(United Nations Research Institute for Social Development,
2010).

 It consists of policies and programs designed to reduce poverty

and vulnerability by promoting:
 efficient labour markets,
 diminishing people's exposure to risks, and
 enhancing their capacity to manage economic and social risks,
 such as unemployment, exclusion, sickness, disability, and old
age (World Bank. 2001).
 What is social protection?

 It is one of the targets of the United Nations Sustainable

Development Goal 10 aimed at promoting greater equality
(UNDP, 2020).

 The most common types of social protection are:

 1. Labour market interventions
 2. Social insurance
 3. Social assistance.
 Labour Market Interventions

 Labour market interventions, consisting of both active and passive

policies, provide protection for the poor who are capable of gaining
employment.

 Passive programs, such as unemployment insurance, income support

and changes in labour legislation, alleviate the financial needs of the
unemployed but are not designed to improve their employability
(Governance and Social Development Resource Centre, 2010).

 Active programs focus on directly increasing the access of

unemployed workers to the labour market (Asian Development
Bank, 2010).
 Active Labour Market Policies

 Active labour market policies (ALMPs) have two basic

objectives:
 1. Economic focuses on reducing unemployment, increasing
the ability of the unemployed to find jobs, and increasing their
earning capacity, productivity and earnings.

 2. Social on the other hand focuses on improving social

inclusion and participation in productive employment.
 Active Labour Market Policies

 These programs thus aim to increase employment opportunities

and address the social problems that often accompany high
unemployment.

 Active policies are a way of reversing the negative effects of

industrial restructuring in transition economies and to help
integrate vulnerable people furthest from the labour markets
(The World Bank. Social Protection, 2010).
 Labour Intervention Strategies

 Active labour market interventions include a wide range of activities

to stimulate employment and productivity such as:
 Employment services. These services include counselling,
placement assistance, job matching, and other related services to
improve the functioning of the labour market.

 Job Training. This includes training/retraining for the unemployed,

workers in mass layoffs and youth to increase the quantity of work
supply.

 Direct employment generation. The promotion of small and

medium enterprises (e.g., public works projects, subsidies) to
increase labour demand (Betcherman, G., Olivas, K. and Dar, A.,
2004).
 Labour Intervention Strategies

 Successful labour market interventions incorporates the informal

economy not covered by social security schemes and work-
related measures of social protection.

 Labour market interventions work to integrate the different

strategies to prevent and compensate occupational and social
risks in the informal economy.

 The strategies that include measures to prevent and mitigate the

impact of risks are the most effective (Lund, 2009).
 Social Insurance

 Social insurance schemes are contributory programmes that

protect beneficiaries from catastrophic expenses in exchange for
regular payments of premiums.

 Health costs can be very high, so health insurance schemes are a

popular way reducing risk in the event of shock. However, an
individual with low income may not be able to afford insurance.

 Community-based health insurance allows pooling in settings

where institutional capacity is too weak to organize nationwide
risk-pooling, especially in low-income countries, making
insurance more affordable (Ranson, 2002).
 Social Assistance

 Social assistance schemes comprise programs designed to help the

most vulnerable individuals households and communities to meet
a social floor and improve living standards.

 These include those with no other means of support such as single

parent households, victims of natural disasters or civil conflict,
handicapped people, or the destitute poor.

 These programs consist of all forms of public action, government

and non-government, that are designed to transfer resources, either
cash or in-kind (e.g., food transfers), to eligible vulnerable and
deprived persons (Howell, F., 2001).
 Social Security

 Is the protection which society provides for its members through a

series of public measure against the economic and social distress
that otherwise would have caused by the stoppage of earning
resulting from:


 sickness, maternity,
 employment, unemployment,
 injury, disability,
 old age and death;
 the provision of medical care; and
 the provision of subsidies for families with children." (ILO, 1999)
Social Security System
 Social Security System

 There is no a one-size-fit all social security system.

 However, the implementation of a social security system
should take into account each country’s
 economic,
 political,
 social, cultural, and
 geographical distinct characteristics
 Social Protection Floor

 The social protection floor (SPF) is the first level of protection

in a national social protection system.

 It is a basic set of social rights derived from human

right treaties, including access to essential services such as:
 health,
 education,
 housing,
 water and sanitation among others,
 social transfers in cash or kind, to guarantee economic
security, food security, adequate nutrition.
 Social Development

 Social development is a planned change towards the

betterment of the quality of life of the people.

 It compasses not only growth but also, capacity, equity,

empowerment, sustainability and independence.

 It involves social, economic and political changes for the

welfare of the nation as a whole.
 Universalism vs. Targeting

 There are two main schools of thought concerning scope of

social protection.
 Universalism argues that each person, by merit of simply
being a citizen should be entitled to benefits from social
protection programs. Such a policy would avoid means-
testing and any conditionalities such as work requirements
(UNRISD, 2010).

 One of the greatest benefits to this policy is social solidarity,

since everyone contributes collaboratively to a system that
everyone also benefits from. Social security is one such
example.
 Universalism vs. Targeting

 Moreover, economists have argued that universalism is an

investment in human capital that aids the development of a
nation as a whole (Mares, 2007).

 Opponents would argue that universalism is cost-ineffective and

unfairly distorts individual efforts.

 Such an argument points toward targeting as a better solution

(Sen Amartya, 1999).

 In such a case, the question arises of who should be the target

population that receives benefits from social programs.
  End of Lecture 6

 Questions or Comments