SPMonitor 2016
SOCIAL PROTECTION MONITOR
Social Protection Measures throughout the world: January to December 2016
The Social Protection Monitor presents the latest policy trends based on media announcements on social protection measures. This update covers January to December 2016.
Social protection measures by region
ALERT! Adjustment reforms:
| Increasing retirement age | 14 |
| Reducing benefits | 6 |
| Reducing pension benefits | 6 |
| Total or partial closure of a programme | 6 |
| Reducing the period for receiving the benefits | 4 |
| Reducing budgetary allocations | 4 |
| Rationalization and narrow of programmes or benefits | 3 |
| Reducing retirement age | 3 |
More information on adjustment measures:
The Decade of Adjustment: A Review of Austerity Trends 2010-2020 in 187 Countries
Social protection global policy trends 2010-2015
Developments by components of the social protection floor
Summary of trends
From January to December 2016, 266 social protection reforms were announced worldwide. Most of the measures were concentrated in Sub-Saharan Africa (26 per cent), Europe and Central Asia (21 per cent) and North America (17 per cent). Overall, 44 per cent relate to non-contributory systems, 49 per cent to contributory systems, and 7 per cent of measures are composed of both. The most frequently cited areas were measures consisting of several components of social protection (30 per cent) and child and family benefits (28 per cent), followed by old-age protection (21 per cent) and working-age protection (17 per cent).
The period shows overall positive developments, as 72 per cent of the measures were expansionary. Extending social protection coverage is the most predominant trend (20 per cent), followed by introduction of a new programme or benefit (8 per cent). However, a number of reforms contracted social protection systems. Pensions were the most affected, with about 5 per cent of measures implemented to increase the retirement age. Most of the changes in social protection schemes were parametric adjustments (91 per cent). Structural reforms took place mainly in sub-Saharan Africa.
Regarding the impact of social protection benefits on specific social groups, around 14 per cent of the identified measures included a gender dimension and 22 per cent were implemented to address the needs of the poor or extreme poor.
Methodology
ILO’s Social Protection Monitor is based on media/news published online. The Monitor tracks announcements of social protection measures, defined as any policy decision that affects the functioning of a social protection system, from minor parametric adjustments to major developments and reforms, as well as social subsidies. The Monitor is a useful source for addressing the information gap since updates to the comprehensive global social protection statistics reported in the ILO Social Security Inquiry take years to compile. Note that the Monitor is biased given that governments do not always announce, and often underreport, contraction/adjustment measures. While the Monitor provides the most comprehensive list of announced social protection measures and a glimpse at present global trends, it does not replace the thorough analysis provided by the ILO’s Social Security Inquiry and the World Social Protection Report. For more information, click here.
Top ten measures
| Extending coverage | 54 |
| Introduction of a new programme or benefit | 22 |
| Enhancing the administration of the programme | 19 |
| Increasing benefits | 19 |
| Increasing the period for receiving the benefits | 19 |
| Increasing retirement age | 17 |
| Increasing budgetary allocations | 15 |
| Increasing pension benefits | 11 |
| Reducing retirement age | 7 |
| Total or partial closure of a programme | 6 |
Developments by type of social protection scheme
Measures classified by social protection functions
See more:
Global Social Protection Monitor 2010 - 2016
Highlights:
- In Ghana, indigents were included into the National Health Insurance Scheme
- In Canada, the Government increased benefits for disabled people who reside in rural areas to help them with the costs of transportation
- In Rwanda, a new law now allows mothers to receive full salary during maternity leave, so as to prevent women from returning to work too soon
- In China, Beijing extended maternity and paternity leave, while Shanghai extended marriage leave to encourage couples to have a second child. The Anhui Province also granted women the right to take one or two days of menstrual leave upon presentation of a medical certificate.
- Bhutan revised its maternity leave policy, guaranteeing a six-month maternity leave for civil servants
- The United States advanced parental benefits, with the introduction of paid parental leave policies in the City of San Antonio, Durham County, Greensboro, Lake Jackson, Missoula County, Pima County, San Francisco, Summit County and Wake County. California extended the benefits and coverage of its already in place family leave policy, while New York State joined the group of four states in the country with mandatory paid family leave
- Rwanda and Congo signed a cooperation Pension Agreement that allows Rwandans who worked in Congo and vice versa to receive their pension and occupational hazards benefits through the pension schemes of their country of origin
- In Brazil, the Federal Government approved an austerity package that limits public social spending for the next 20 years to the inflation rate of the previous year. In Rio de Janeiro, the State Government has also announced a set of austerity measures that comprise a decrease in pension benefits of state employees and the elimination of social benefits to the homeless and the poor
- In Singapore, unwed mothers were granted the right to 16 weeks of maternity leave, while in Spain paternity leave was increased from 2 to 4 weeks
- In Morocco, domestic workers were included in the country’s Labour Law and are now granted similar rights as other types of workers
- Poland decreased the retirement age to 65 years for men and 60 for women
- The United Kingdom passed the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016, a legislation that established cuts on benefits for working-age, unemployed and disabled people, as well as on housing benefits. The measures include cuts on the Employment Support Allowance (ESA) and on the universal credit work allowances, the introduction of local housing allowance caps and the elimination of family and youth housing benefits
- In Madagascar, the unconditional cash transfer program "FIAVOTA" was launched to address the challenges faced by populations in the drought-affected areas of the country. Malawi started a similar initiative, with the launch of the social cash transfer program "K13.2bn public works"
- In Ghana, the School Feeding Policy was put into effect to serve as guidance for the Ghana School Feeding Programme, in force since 2005
- Bangladesh launched the food programme “Hunger to vanish in Bangladesh of Sheikh Hasina” to provide subsidized rice to the extremely-poor, particularly during the lean season