Social Protection and Jobs Discussion Papers
191 items available
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Social Protection & Jobs Discussion Papers (formerly Social Protection & Labor Discussion Papers) are published to communicate the results of the World Bank’s work to the development community with the least possible delay. The typescript manuscript of this paper therefore has not been prepared in accordance with the procedures appropriate to formally edited texts.
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Publication
Novissi Togo: Harnessing Artificial Intelligence to Deliver Shock-Responsive Social Protection
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-09-27)This case study, jointly authored by the Government of Togo and the World Bank, documents the innovative features of the NOVISSI program and posits some directions for the way forward. The study examines how Togo leveraged artificial intelligence and machine learning methods to prioritize the rural poor in the absence of a shock-responsive social protection delivery system and a dynamic social registry. It also discusses the main challenges of the model and the risks and implications of implementing such a program. -
Publication
Constraints to Digital Financial Inclusion of Beneficiaries of PSARA Cash Transfer Program in Haiti: A Demand-side Analysis and Recommendations
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-09-19)The Adaptive Social Protection for Increased Resilience project (ASPIRE or PSARA for its acronym in French), financed by The World Bank and implemented by the government of Haiti, aims to design and implement a cash transfer program for vulnerable households in Haiti, with a focus on increasing financial inclusion and digitizing payments. This report analyzes the financial inclusion landscape of beneficiaries; identifies demand-side barriers to the uptake of Digital Financial Services (DFS); and provides recommendations for promoting the use of DFS among beneficiaries and their communities. The findings of this report show that while access to formal financial services is limited, there is more access and usage of mobile money and informal services through the Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). The report recommends actions to remove barriers to DFS usage, such as creating and promoting DFS use cases among beneficiaries, increasing trust and confidence in using e-wallets, working with policymakers to provide IDs for beneficiaries and with regulators to reduce Know Your Customer (KYC) on low-tier accounts, and increasing mobile phone ownership. Additionally, the report suggests strategies to support a robust DFS ecosystem, including designing attractive products for low-income customers and building a sustainable Cash-in and Cash-out agent network. -
Publication
Social Protection in a World of Crisis: Learning from the Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-07-05)This paper explores the social protection response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine to learn lessons on how to build the resilience of their social protection system. These countries made substantial efforts to address the most serious consequences of the pandemic, pragmatically harnessing existing programs to reach vulnerable groups, while also introducing innovations to fill gaps in the existing social protection system. Rigidities in administrative systems, complex eligibility criteria, as well as weaknesses in information systems, limited governments’ ability to quickly identify and reach those households that were most vulnerable to the impact of the pandemic with adequate support. These challenges strengthen the case for investment in crisis preparedness – most immediately by improving the functioning of social protection systems and setting out the design features and delivery systems to support a response to future covariate shocks. -
Publication
Global Social Protection Responses to Inflation: Living Paper, v.5
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-06-30)Between December 2022 and May 2023, the number of social protection and other related measures announced or implemented in response to inflation rose by about 31%. The latest tally includes 1,333 responses across 178 economies. Overall, subsidies claim 33% of such measures and take four main forms (fuel, food, fertilizers, and various fee subsidies). Social assistance accounts for 31% of responses, 77% of which is provided in the form of cash transfers. Tax measures represent 19% of the global responses, and trade, active labor market policies and social insurance claim a share of 6% each. Based on planned coverage data from 116 economies, social protection programs intend to cover 1.94 billion people or about 25% of the world’s population. But so far, actual coverage shows that 303.5 million individuals, or about 4% of the global population, were reached (based on data from 36 economies). Next, based on expenditure data from 561 programs across 143 economies, a total of $1.01 trillion is being invested in social protection responses. This involves an average country spending of 1.06% of GDP. The average size of both social assistance and subsidy transfers represents slightly over a quarter (i.e., 27%) of the daily median income, while their average initial duration is 7.3 months. Almost one-fifth of the responses to inflation have been extended, and the average duration of such extensions is 8.5 months. Over half of social assistance transfers are new (56%) and are provided on a one-off basis (47%). -
Publication
Social Protection Program Spending and Household Welfare in Ghana
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2023-05-01)Ghana administers multiple social protection programs. One, pensions provided by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust, has a long history, but the rest of the programs have been introduced and expanded over the past two decades. This study assesses the performance of the government of Ghana’s main social assistance and social insurance programs. It discusses the main design and implementation parameters of the programs and summarizes existing evaluative and operational research. The study also examines patterns and trends in program benefit spending, based on government administrative data, and the coverage rates of the programs, their incidence, and their effectiveness in reducing poverty and inequality, based on recent national household sample survey data. Further, the study examines the relationship between household participation in social assistance programs and exposure to adverse covariate shocks, specifically, possible weather-related shocks, based on high-resolution climate risk maps for the country -
Publication
Childcare Arrangements for Low-Income Families: Evidence from Low and Middle-Income Countries
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-12)This study reviews options of childcare and early learning arrangements in developing countries, focusing on innovative options for public and nonstate provision that fit the needs and constraints of low-income families. It discusses both home-based care (provided in a home setting) and center-based care (nurseries, crèches, daycares or sometimes preschools) through various country examples and four in-depth case studies (from Colombia, Kenya, India, and Liberia). This comparative analysis shows that a wide range of provision models are leveraged to meet the demand for childcare in low- and middle-income countries and that intentional policy initiatives can promote positive social norms towards early childhood services and women’s economic empowerment. Yet, benefits to children and families depend on the quality of services and the wider enabling environment thy operate in. -
Publication
Affordable Childcare: A Needs Assessment of Low-income Mothers and Childcare Providers in Urban Bangladesh
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-11)Investments in childcare can generate immense economic and social benefits through increased female labor force participation and improved child development outcomes. However, high quality childcare options in Bangladesh are limited and available options are unaffordable for the urban poor. This paper examines the needs, preferences, and practices pertaining to childcare among parents and care providers for low-income households in urban Bangladesh. On the demand side, this paper finds that rapid urbanization along with a decrease in multigenerational households are increasing the demand for childcare services. Perceptions of child safety and the potential for child development are the two main factors driving the choice of care provider. However, knowledge of childcare best practices is limited among the urban poor, resulting in risky childcare practices at home. On the supply side, there is a severe gap in care provision, limiting access for the urban poor. The lack of sustainable financing is a major challenge for affordable care provision in Bangladesh. The absence of a regulatory framework and minimum standards for childcare has led to significant variations in the quality of care. -
Publication
Guiding Social Protection Targeting Through Satellite Data in São Tomé and Príncipe
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-10)Social safety net programs focus on a subset of the population, usually the poorest and most vulnerable. However, in most developing countries there is no administrative data on relative wealth of the population to support the selection process of the potential beneficiaries of the social safety net programs. Hence, selection into programs is often multi-methodological approached and starts with geographical targeting for the selection of program implementation areas. To facilitate this stage of the targeting process in São Tomé and Príncipe, this working paper develops High Resolution Satellite Imagery (HRSI) poverty maps, providing both estimates of poverty incidence and program eligibility at a highly detailed resolution (110 m x 110 m). Furthermore, the analysis combines poverty incidence and population density to enable the geographical targeting process. This working paper shows that HRSI poverty maps can be used as key operational tools to facilitate the decision-making process of the geographical targeting and efficiently identify entry points for rapidly expanding social safety net programs. Unlike HRSI poverty maps based on census data, poverty maps based on satellite data and machine learning can be updated frequently at low cost supporting more adaptive social protection programs. -
Publication
Digitizing Cash Transfers to Remote Rural Populations: Challenges and Solutions from the Experience of Zambia
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-10)There is currently a major focus on digitization within African countries, with the interest of, on the one hand, increasing efficiency and lowering the cost-of-service delivery, and on the other hand, increasing financial inclusion for excluded parts of the population. Zambia provides an important case study of digitization of social protection transfers. Whilst Zambia is sparsely populated with remote rural populations often living up to 100 km from the nearest town, making beneficiaries hard to reach with digital services, the country has successfully demonstrated that cash transfers can be digitized for remote rural populations to varying extents, tailored to their particular context. This Discussion Note presents challenges faced and solutions found in digitizing cash transfer payments in Zambia, which may be of interest to other countries embarking on similar endeavors. -
Publication
Enhancing Workers’ Protection in Jordan
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2022-04)This paper exploits a rich database to provide comprehensive profiling of informality in Jordan, including who informal workers are, their characteristics, and where they work, as well as providing policy recommendations to address informality. The structural framework developed through the comprehensive profiling is followed by an analysis of why workers are informal, using inferential multivariate analysis. Statistical techniques (that is, cluster analysis) are used to group workers by similar characteristics (including education, gender, income, and form of employment) to allow policy makers to pinpoint specific policy tools that can target each group. The paper offers long term policy solutions to address informality, including fostering competition to boost productivity and providing a level playing field. It also proposes short, and medium-term policy options to protect workers against shocks until more productive jobs are created, for instance through the provision of short-term benefits through defined contribution schemes. Heterogeneity is addressed by tailoring policy instruments to clusters of workers.