Toolkit on Social Health Protection
This Toolkit was developed to raise awareness and support the implementation of social health protection at the national level. It provides information on international conventions, financing mechanisms, and governance frameworks, assisting policymakers and stakeholders in building resilient, inclusive, and sustainable social health protection systems.
Social health protection objectives
Access to health services without hardship
Income security along the life cycle
Health and well-being in the population
An effective social health protection system provides universal access to affordable and quality healthcare, offering financing security during illness, injury, and maternity. The ILO supports its constituents in this effort, through specialized services and resources. This Toolkit provides a gateway to relevant material on social health protection for both practitioners and for those looking to learn more.
ILO conventions & recommendations
ILO standards on social health protection: a rights-based approach towards universal health coverage
Health and social security are human rights and as such should be guaranteed to all persons, leaving no one behind. This rights-based approach is rooted in the body of human rights and ILO standards which represent a global consensus to guide the development of social health protection systems. International standards provide a range of principles that can be employed in the design and implementation of social protection schemes, which satisfy the criteria of availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality. Social health protection is firmly grounded in the international rights framework.
Statistical picture: Tracking legal, effective coverage & adequacy
The right to social health protection is not yet a universal reality. Significant progress was achieved in increasing population coverage, with almost two thirds of the global population protected by a scheme. Still, while population coverage increased, less attention was paid to adequacy and equity in some contexts.
Figure 1 - Share of the population protected by social health protection (protected persons), by regions, subregion, and income level, 2023 or latest available year (percentage)
In 2015, 2.1 billion people across the world were in need of care, and that number is expected to reach 2.3 billion by 2030.
Building Social Health Protection systems throughout the world
ILO analyses and compiles experiences from around the world in their efforts to build resilient, inclusive, and sustainable universal Social Protection systems. These efforts highlight social health protection as a transformative policy tool that ensure access to healthcare without financial hardship. The reports showcase projects, identify challenges, and examine coverage gaps, exploring their root causes.
Boundaries shown do not imply endorsement or acceptance by the ILO. Please click here for more details.
Other relevant resources
Thematic areas
Capacity building & courses
ILO service offer
Our approach
The ILO promotes a rights-based approach to social health protection, aiming to ensure effective access to quality healthcare without causing financing hardship or impoverishment. This approach is rooted in the body of human rights and ILO standards, which provides a global framework for developing social health protection systems.
Areas of intervention
- Dialogue & Strategy
- Design
- Implementation
Priority countries
The ILO works with line ministries and social health protection institutions, especially in low- and middle-income countries, requesting technical support on social health protection
CONNECT is a multi-stakeholder network of public institutions and non-for-profit private organizations in the Asia Pacific region working together to support the extension of social health protection coverage at country and regional level. The network seeks to strengthen the capacity of target countries to develop and implement strong, sustainable and comprehensive health policies, strategies and plans towards the achievement of universal health coverage. You can find more information on the network here.
Members: Multilateral organization (ILO), Government and research institutes (Health Strategy and Policy Institute, Institute for Health Policy, Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, Lao Tropical and Public Health Institute, Ministry of Public Health of Thailand, National Institute of Public Health of Cambodia), Academic institutions (ASEAN Institute for Health Development at Mahidol University, Australia National University, Hanoi University of Public Health, Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health, Thammasat University, University of Health Sciences of Lao PDR), Other organizations (Action to the Community Development Institute, Swiss Red Cross).
RELEVANT RESOURCES
- Equity in Health for All: Advancing Social Health Protection for Persons with Disabilities
- Towards Universal Social Health Protection Voices from Lao PDR, Myanmar and Viet Nam
- Extending Social Health Protection in Thailand: Accelerating progress towards Universal Health Coverage
- Extending Social Health Protection in the Republic of Korea: Accelerating progress towards Universal Health Coverage
- Overview of Master of Primary Health Care Management – Special Tack in Social Health Protection the ASEAN Health Institute for Health Development at Mahidol University
The Providing for Health (P4H) Network gathers 25 members worldwide working on social health protection and health financing. It aims at creating synergies and joint activities, as well as fostering coordination among development partners at national level. P4H is a platform for knowledge sharing and collaboration, providing a space for dialogue and exchange of experiences among its members. You can find more information on the network here.
Members: Multilateral organizations (ILO, WHO, World Bank), Development banks (ADB, AfDB, CEB), Bilateral donors (France, Germany, Spain, Switzerland, USA), Partnerships (Global Financing Facility, The Global Fund), Academic institutions (Australian National University, Fudan University School of Public Health, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health, Universidad de Antioquia), Center for Healthcare Quality Assessment and Control of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation.
RELEVANT RESOURCES
- P4H Network presentation
- P4H Blog on Social Protection for Health and Wellbeing
- Joint ILO-WHO Workshop on Epidemics and Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response: How to maximize the health impact of social protection systems? (see the outcome document on emerging principles)
- Health, social protection and climate change: Time for action
- Securing Comprehensive Maternity Protection in Kenya
- Extending Social Health Protection in Mongolia: Accelerating progress towards Universal Health Coverage
Partnerships
Videos
Kenya: Maternity cash benefit for women in the informal economy - call to action
Extending social health protection: Accelerating progress towards UHC in Asia and the Pacific
Towards Universal Social Health Protection Voices: Nguyen Thi Ha