Transcript ILO: The Social Protection Floor and Social Safety Nets: Two

International
Labour
Office
The Social Protection Floor and Social
Safety Nets: Two alternative concepts ?
Michael Cichon, ILO
Veronika Wodsak, ILO
Varatharajan Durairaj, WHO
12 May 2010
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Structure of the presentation
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Point One: Roots of the Protection Floor
concept
Point Two: The CEB Inititiave and its definiton
of theSocial Protection floor
Point Three: Comparing the Social Protection
Floor and Social Safety Nets
Point Four: Where are we? What next?
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One: The Human Rights Roots …
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Article 22 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states: “Everyone, as a
member of society, has the right to social security” further explained by
article 25 and echoed by the International Covenant on Economic and Social
Rights (1966,1976) as commented by the Committee on Economic, Social and
Cultural rights in 2008 stating
– Progressive implementation of the right to social security while maintaining
– a core obligation to select a core group of social risks and contingencies for
immediate implementation
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Other international legal instruments like the Convention of the Right of the
Child (1990)
THE SPF CONCEPT TRIES TO PROVIDE a LOGICAL AND COHERENT
FRAMEWORK FOR THE CORE CONTENT OF THE BASIC SOCIAL RIGHTS
EVEN IN TIMES OF CRISES
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One: A UN System
Emergency response to the crisis
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In April 2009, the UN Chief Executives Board (CEB)
has agreed on nine joint initiatives to confront the
crisis, accelerate recovery and pave the way for a
fairer and more sustainable globalization:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Additional financing for the most vulnerable
Food Security
Trade
A Green Economy Initiative
A Global Jobs Pact
A Social Protection Floor
Humanitarian, Security and Social Stability
Technology and Innovation
Monitoring and Analysis
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Two: What is the Social Protection Floor
(SPF)–Initiative? ..
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The SPF Initiative aims at joint UN action to promote
access to essential services and social transfers for the
poor and vulnerable. It includes:
– A basic set of essential social rights and
transfers, in cash and in kind, to provide a
minimum income and livelihood security for poor
and vulnerable populations and to facilitate access
to essential services, such as health care
– Geographical and financial access to essential
services, such as health, water and sanitation,
education, social work
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Two: Social Protection Floor –
A definition
=> The definition transcends the mandate of any individual
UN agency, so a coherent, system-wide approach is
needed.
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Two: The transfer package of four essential
guarantees :
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Universal access to a nationally defined basic package
of health benefits,
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Income security for all children at absolute poverty level
through family/child benefits aimed to facilitate access
to basic social services: education, health, housing.
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Access to basic means tested/self targeting social
assistance (ensuring a minimum income of the
absolute poverty level) the for the poor and
unemployed in active age groups.
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Income security (at the level of the absolute poverty
line) for people in old age, invalidity and survivors
through basic pensions.
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Two: The key characteristics
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Benefit eligibility and levels are guaranteed entitlements as of right in
certain contingencies
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Contingencies can be defined through
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Belonging to a certain population subgroup (young, active
age, old)
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Being in need (in need of HC, or in need of income transfers
due to lack of income) or
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a combination thereof
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Social protection floor guarantees thus can be targeted or universal,
key is universal protection of « all in need of such protection »
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The SPF is thus a permanent component of a national social
security/protection system not an adhoc mechanism = systemic
insurance of all against poverty
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Cash transfers schemes are generally partial income security
guarantees and thus elements of a complete SPF
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Two: The characteristics …
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The package is giving concrete contents to the human
right to social security
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It is the minimum level of protection that a decent
society that has the power to collect revenues should
provide to all its residents
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A package definition is needed to ensure that national
planning processes
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aim at the implementation of a complete set of guarantees
even if that can only be implemented over time,
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that countries implementing only part of the floor are aware
of the opportunity cost in terms of not (yet ) implemented
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Two: Operationalisation
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We measure the SPF achievement (closure of
the gap) by: share of people in need/entitled
covered*proportion of coverage gap closed
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Proxy cost: If we were to close the US 1.25
poverty gap:
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in least developed countries: 45 bill. US$ = 8.9 % of
their GDP,
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in less developed countries: 117 Bill US$ = 0.9% of
their GDP
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Requires domestic financing, external
financing can only provide short-term support
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Two: Key actors in the UN initiative
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At country level, the Initiative is owned/supported by:
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Government institutions: ministries of labour, health, finance,
agriculture, social security institutions etc.
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Non-governmental actors: social partners, national NGOs, etc.
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UN country teams
It is supported internationally through:
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The Global advisory network of UN agencies: ILO, WHO, FAO, IMF,
OHCHR, UN Regional Commissions, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNDESA,
UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNHABITAT, UNHCR, UNODC, UNRWA,
WFP, WMO, World Bank
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Development partners: Regional Development Banks, bilateral donors,
International NGOs
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Two: Real life evidence…
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“Compendium of Evidence on Cash transfer programs in
Developing Countries”
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A number of countries are already providing basic guarantees
28 countries in the study:
– 8 in Africa,
– 9 in Asia,
– 11 in Latin America
Number of studies: 80 studies during 1999 and 2008
Number of programmes: 63
Estimated number of total beneficiaries (primary and secondary, at the end of
2008): between 150 and 200 million people
Expenditure starts at less than 0.5% of GDP…
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Three: Safety Nets or Social Protection
Floors?
Criteria
Safety Nets
Social Protection Floor
Overall Objective
Poverty reduction/ Support
government choices that
support efficiency and
growth
Giving effect to the
Human Right to Social
Security
Type of
interventions
Targeted set of noncontributory transfers,
depending on government
priorities
Universal entitlement to
protection through a
defined basic package
for all in need
Benefit levels
Minimum consistent with
adequacy, defined as
“meaningful benefits”
National poverty lines
Role
SNs as transitory response
measures/ short term
(crisis, reforms)
Rights-based, systemic
“insurance” against
poverty for all residents
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Commonalities: safety nets / SPF
policies…
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Are one element of a broader social
protection policy / social policy framework
Aim at redistribution, risk management,
poverty reduction, investment opportunities
Require a substantial investment in
institutional structures/ administrative and
implementation capacities
Need sustainable financing
Need to be flexible/dynamic
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Set theory relations…
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Safety nets
Social security
social protection floor
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Four: What has been done so far?
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Manual for country operations established
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Global Advisory Network constituted
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Advocacy at global, regional, national levels had some success =>
e.g. Global Jobs Pact, UNCSocD RESOLUTION
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Rapid SPF assessments methodology is being developed
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South-South dialogue has started
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Activities started in several countries: Burkina, Benin, Cambodia,
Maldives, Mozambique, Thailand, soon to start: Ethiopia, Honduras
…
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SPF Training for national planners
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Four: What next at the global level?
 Short
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to medium term:
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Training of planners
Country projects to be completed
SOUTH SOUTH learning dialogue: success stories and
workshop
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Country scans
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Interagency Stocktaking Meeting November 2010
 Long-term:
Concept to be anchored in official institutional strategies
of the UN agencies, e.g. through ILO recurrent review in 2011, and
possibly standard setting instruments
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