South-South learning on social protection

South-South Learningon Social Protection:

Policy Dialogue and Engagement

Rathin RoyDirector, IPC-IG

Brasilia

Workshop “Knowledge Sharing for Development:

Taking Stock of Best Practices”

KDI Center for International Development & OECD Development Centre

Paris, 12 July

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1- Social Protection: Concept and Practice The Analytical Challenge

2- Three Pillars and the Missing PillarBroader Policy Dialogue on Social

Protection

3 - Knowledge Sharing on Social Protection

Mechanisms

4 - ILO-UNDP report to G20 DWG

Knowledge Sharing on Social Protection: Outline

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oThe experience of the emerging economies during the recent crisis suggests that large-scale social protection programmes that had been put in place prior to the crisis not only served to mitigate the impact of the crisis on the poor and vulnerable but also had significant countercyclical value.

o These programmes were not designed to act purely as safety nets but were embedded in development policies. The development results secured hence ‘paid’ for the initiatives across the medium term.

Social Protection: Concept and Practice

Not just safety nets…

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oThe political economy context with social protection in place also allowed these governments ‘political room’ to augment aggregate demand as the machinery to deliver such demand increases to populations with a high marginal propensity to consume.

o This underscore the imperative to explicitly incorporate a focus on social policies and social resilience as central pillars of broader medium-term inclusive growth and macroeconomic resilience agendas.


Not just safety nets…

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oThere is no policy consensus as to what is in fact encompassed by social protection.

o Nor is there agreement on the instruments or their scope as regards the deployment of social protection to promote inclusive and resilient growth.

o Considerable attention has been paid to the design and the approach to targeting in individual ‘flagship’ programmes.

o Less consideration has been given to identifying how integration can be promoted across a set of programmes and how the social protection system can be designed to respond to new structural vulnerabilities while addressing previously defined national priorities: i.e.


The Analytical Challenge

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oWhat targeting mechanisms and instruments to use and how to balance the focus on the chronic poor and vulnerable groups (e.g. bottom 10%) with new groups of poor created by growth related volatility, climate change induced disturbances and significant fluctuations in the prices of food and fuel?

o Analytical work on the linkages between social protection and inclusive growth is also in its relative infancy and the weights of direct productive roles of social protection programmes and the productive impacts of social protection and productive inclusion are still being disentangled.


The Analytical Challenge

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o This implies that knowledge creation on social protection is still in an early analytical phase.

o Learning is happening across a range of nationals and circumstances.

o Acknowledge management strategy for social protection therefore needs to take this analytical reality into account.

o Simplistic notions of “sharing best practice” will not work


Implication

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o Policy dialogue should move away of blueprints and focus on the heterogeneity of experiences that have used common instruments.

o Such approach would enable countries to have access to and customize a much richer set of policy options.

o CCTs are a clear example in which a narrow blueprint has been spread around the world whereas their actual implementation of Latin American countries does differ of this blueprint.

o IPC-IG research on CCTs has emphasized the need to move away of the commonalities in which blueprints are based to understand the processes that led to different policy options in different countries.


Cash Transfer Programmes (CCTs): IPC-IG’s experience

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Section 2

Three Pillars and the Missing Pillar: Broader Policy Dialogue on Social Protection

Knowledge Sharing on Social Protection

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o Processes

o Tools and methodologies

o Political engagement


Three Pillars and the Missing Pillar

And… often forgotten and very needed: Policy dialogue

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o Processes

The programme has evolved from experiences from the previous Federal/Local governments.

It was highly informed by the initial experiences of sub-national governments.

These two facts explain cross-partisan support despite different preferences across (and within) parties with regard to policy options: conditionalities, benefit values, number of beneficiaries etc.

Merge of existing programmes into a larger programme with higher benefits and larger coverage was the step forward taken by the first term of President Lula.


Case: Bolsa Família in Brazil

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oTools

The construction of the single registry required the establishment a “shared management” system in which local governments had a major role.

Intensive capacity building at the local level was paramount for the expansion of the programme without losing its targeting performance.

Performance-based transfers to local governments were used to guarantee both political and technical commitment in the implementation of the programme.



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oPolitical engagement

Strong backing of the president and his ability to share the success the programme with mayors (local government).

Cross-partisan support as well as support from planning and finance ministries.

Use of international projection of the country as a platform to disseminate the Brazilian experience.

Strong mobilization of the public opinion: ‘Zero Hunger’ campaign.



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o Workshop held in Johannesburg, South Africa (October, 2010)

o Participants : almost 80 policy makers, policy advisors and researchers

o Brazil, China, South Africa, India + 7 countries

Objective: “to present policy options in social policy that have emerged in the Global South which have demonstrated capacity to generate resilience and reduce vulnerability of national development processes”

The Missing Pillar: Broader Policy Dialogue on Social Protection

Case: A Policy Dialogue and a South-South Learning Event on Long-Term Social Protection for Inclusive Growth

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The first two panels of the IBSA Academic Forum 2010 held in Brasilia explored the approach, the design and the synergies between social transfer and public employment programs in the three countries.

IBSA is different from many other plurilateral for incorporating an explicit focus on social policy issues. At the Summit in 2010, the three countries put forward a joint paper on social development strategies. The strategy includes the following principles: moving from flagships to comprehensive social protection; addressing vulnerabilities and fostering social and economic inclusion; investing in human capital and ensuring access to basic services; ensuring food security; promoting civil society participation, deepening democracy; embracing local knowledge and culture and working towards sustainable development.

Learning and exchange on the design and implementation of the social protection programmes is emerging a growing area of interest for the three countries. This has involved multiple study tours and an involvement of experts from the IBSA countries in the design/assessment of programmes.


Case: IBSA Academic Forum

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Health care costs and expenditures on essential medicines are a major source of vulnerability and a significant component of the public budget. Health policy reforms are underway in the various IBSA countries and continue to be an important area for policy dialogue and exchange.

The IBSA Delhi Summit Declaration of 15 October 2008 signaled the need to establish trilateral cooperation in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) with the objective to promote a balanced IPR regime and to ensure that it makes a meaningful contribution to the economic and social progress of developing countries by ensuring access to knowledge and healthcare.

The IBSA Academic Forum/Policy Dialogue in 2010 sought to facilitate knowledge-sharing on strategies to promote universal and affordable access to essential drugs (including ARVs for HIV/AIDS).

The dialogue also explored some of the more complex issues such as the ‘TRIPS plus’ provisions in free trade agreements of one or IBSA countries which can have implications for the other countries dependent on them for imports of essential medicines The message was to negotiate jointly and not bilaterally.


Case: IBSA Academic Forum – Health Innovations

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Section 3

Knowledge Sharing on Social Protection: Mechanisms


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Pillars: Processes

‘Study tours, intergovernmental secondments, policy support through technical exchanges.

National Processes

International Processes Information on international events such as this

one, international dialogues, Cross sectoral initiatives and instruments (such as PRSPS).

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Pillars: Tools and Methodologies

Collection of best practices methodologies technical information

Solutions exchange

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Pillars: Political Engagement

Engagement with cross sectorial ministries, donors, non-government actors.

Shibboleth destruction (e.g. social protection is expensive).

Demonstration of political results.

Alliances within legislature, judiciary, and collective action groupings.

Enabling actions to confront vested interests.

Resistance to external imposition of best practice.

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Pillars: Policy dialogue

Will embedded social protection policies and the derivative knowledge sharing activities within a country overall development strategy, by keeping at the forefront the question: social protection for what? In a country specific context.

National Level

International Level Will move away from knowledge sharing being just exchange of best practices tools and modus operandi, which has been the hallmark of aid delivered capacity development activities to date.

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•Social protection policy advice in and for the SouthOrigin: Africa-Brazil Cooperation Programme on Social Protection (IPC-IG, Brazil’s Social Development Ministry – with DfID funding)

•Showcasing innovations in social policy in the SouthExplains social protection frameworks of 17 LAC countries; 45 African countries; 29 Asia/Pacific countries Regular and updated news from government partners and Southern-based research centres

•Fostering continuous learning and dialogueRoster of social protection practitioners and specialistsSocial networking and discussion forum

Gateway: http://south-south.ipc-undp.org/

South-South Learning on Social Protection Gateway

Knowledge Sharing Mechanisms on Social Protection

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Multimedia production Documentary: “A Journey through Social Protection in Brazil” – Learning tool aimed at African policymakersSpecial Series “Ideas to Eradicate Poverty” – Videos, interviews, manuals

Watch Trailer

Study Tours Comprehensive learning sessions on social protection in Brazil: Tools, Metodologies, and Political Processes (challenges, perspectives) courses Missions from 32 countries Various successes policy implementation: Timor-Leste, Zambia, Paraguay, Kenya, Viet Nam, Venezuela, etc

Knowledge materialsAssessments of social programmes of over 70 countriesPublications, Policy Briefs in English, Portuguese, French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese and Turkish

Learning and engagement tools


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o We conceptualize knowledge sharing in the realm of social protection, in the context of its importance in the current development discourse to have four dimensions.

oWork within each of these dimensions enables integration of social protection policies within the overall set of policies designed to secure inclusive and equitable growth—precisely what was achieved by Brazil, India, Mexico etc.. - this is the main LESSON LEARNT.

o Equally the operational modality can be conceived of as having four components.

o Policy dialogue is what brings these components together and enables the discussion to take place in a real time evolutionary – as opposed to ossified best practice framework.


Conclusion

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Section 4

ILO-UNDP report to G-20 DWG


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o Existing social protection systems permit a rapid response to crises, differentiated by population needs and vulnerabilities.

o There is no one‐size‐fits‐all to extending social protection coverage.

o Many countries have already put into place one or more programmes of social protection, albeit with limited coverage or benefits. Most countries begin small and progressively expand the coverage and depth of their social protection systems.

o Social protection programmes link to other developmental interventions, and a harmonized approach that places them within national development strategies and national social dialogue helps to realize gains along many dimensions.

o As they expand, there is a clear need for policy advisory and guidance; and strengthening administrative and implementation capacities.

ILO-UNDP report to G20

Conclusions and recommendations for the G20

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o Policy coherence and coordination among international organizations is fundamental to enhance effectiveness in supporting low income countries.

o The experience of a large number of developing countries has helped shed new light on the design and impact of programmes, including issues such as affordability, targeting and conditionality. This experience, if shared properly, reduces the need for countries to begin from scratch.

o Social protection programmes, notably initial systems, can be part of national social protection floors, that express each country’s circumstances and vision for social protection. The best way to deal with short term impacts of external shocks on vulnerable communities is by gradually building sustainable comprehensive social protection systems.

o Technological innovations are important not only for improving program delivery, but also because they hold the potential for making timely information available that can improve our knowledge of the impacts of crises, thereby improving the accuracy and speed of responses.


Conclusions and recommendations for the G20

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1. The G20 could call on international organizations to work together, under a common framework, to provide support to countries that wish to strengthen and expand their social protection systems. This support should be provided according to the unique and diverse circumstances of individual countries and guided by the principles below. It should facilitate learning from successful experiences, through effective South South, North South and triangular approaches.

2. The G20 could request the establishment of a knowledge exchange network, in convergence with actions under Pillar 9, which could be hosted by a specific agency and owned by a broad initiative of agencies.

3. The G20 could call on international organizations, including the IMF, ILO, UNDP, UNICEF, the World Bank, the WFP, the WHO and the regional development banks, that provide technical advisory services in social protection, to establish a mechanism to improve their coordination and policy coherence towards supporting countries in designing and implementing national social protection systems.


Key recommendations

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4. The G20 could call on the ILO and UNDP, in collaboration with relevant international organizations, to map progress towards extending social protection coverage in low and middle income, countries, including crisis‐relevant social protection mechanisms, and report to the Development Group in 2012. This work should include extensive primarily research as well as the collection of successful practices and lessons learnt.

5. The G20 Leaders could call on the donor community, including themselves as donor countries, international organizations, the European Commission and OECD‐DAC, as well as South‐South and Triangular cooperation channels to consider coordinated support of social protection initiatives in a group of self‐selected pilot countries. Innovative financing mechanisms could be designed to start up the process on cost‐sharing basis in line with the discussions.

ILO-UNDP report to G20 DWG

Key recommendations

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Thank you!

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www.ipc-undp.org

Twitter: @UNDP_IPC

Photos: Humanizing Development Global Photography Campaign,

IPC-IG

South-South Learning on Social Protection: Policy Dialogue and Engagement

South-South learning on social protection

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