Transcript No Slide Title

Achieving Decent Work for all ages
The role of social protection
United Nations
9 February 2007
Sylvia Beales
[email protected]
HelpAge International…
Is a global network working with and for disadvantaged older
women and men to make sustainable change
…with a focus on supporting their rights, empowerment and
their contributions in poor and middle income countries to
social protection, reduction of poverty, access to health and
HIV/AIDS programmes and equality of treatment
… supporting older citizens and governments to understand
and implement recommendations of 2002 Madrid International
Plan of Action on Ageing
Relevance of Decent work Agenda
for the people in, and economies of, developing
countries…
 Most people work in the informal sector & have
“poor quality” jobs
 Women workers, young and old workers - the
bulk of those in the informal economy - have low
incomes, and lack social protection
Relevance of Decent Work Agenda for …
 child labour
 migrant labour
 loss of work
 informal, poorly protected work
 under-employment, reduced employment
 post-employment, “retirement”
 older carers of HIV/AIDS affected families; 60%
SSA
Decent Work Agenda and older people in
developing countries
% of
over
60’s in
the
labour
force
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Men
Women
Least
Less
More
developed developed developed
regions
regions
regions
Source: Population Ageing 2006 Wallchart, UNDESA
Revisiting the concept of the Decent Work Agenda…
•Balancing economic performance with social
justice – an enabling environment to tackle poverty
•The right of all to work in good quality employment
across the lifecourse
•Recognising all workers - in informal sector as well
as formal - as valuable contributors
•Ensuring social protection available to all workers;
not just those in formal employment schemes
Revisiting the content of the Decent Work Agenda
4 pillars; based on international standards (ILO/UN);
national programmes linked to PRSPs
1. Productive and freely chosen employment
2. Rights at work, including the core labour standards
3. Social protection; right to social security (UDHR)
4. Social dialogue and the inclusion of the gender dimension
Social Protection/social transfers: the underutilized pillar of
the Decent Work Agenda
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
Social security is a universal right
Social protection/ social transfers effectively reduces
poverty of the poorest (older people, children, disabled)
Implementing transfers is a clear indication of political
intent to address vulnerability and support the poorest
Social tranfers deliver rapid impacts – «quick wins» for
poverty reduction; ILO estimate for poverty reducing
impact of social pension and disability grant in Tanzania is
40%
Poverty Reducing impact of social transfers in South Africa;
source Statistics South Africa and Economic Policy Research institute (EPRI)
21%
Poverty headcount
Destitution headcount
37%
48%
Poverty gap
67%
Destitution gap
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
Effect of universal pensions on old age poverty (ECLAC)
Effect and cost of universal pensions (ECLAC2006)
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Latina
America
and
Caribbean
Uruguay
Mexico
Chile
Brazil
Argentina
Poverty before
Poverty rate after
Cost in % of GDP
Impact of social protection; social impact indicators/access to
essential services
 Education
 School enrolments
 School attendance
 School performance
 Access to health care; support for HIV/AIDS affected HH
 Nutrition; and stunting and wasting
 Reported hunger
 Expenditure on food
 Diversity of food consumption
 Rate of return analysis on investment – social returns for poor people,
including older people and children, and for the unemployed
Impact of South Africa’s Social Pension on adult labour force
participation
source South Africa Labour Force calculations and EPRI
Household
does not
receive
social
pension
in 2004
Household
Improvement
receives
associated
social
with social
pension
pension
in 2004
Probability that a poor adult
of working age in 2005 will:
Find employment
7%
9%
2%
Actively look for work
13%
15%
2%
NOTE: Sample includes working age adults (older than 16) in households in the lowest income
quintile but with no working individuals in September 2004.
Social transfers are affordable
Cost of universal old age pension and disability grant (ILO 2006)
1.2%
0.8%
2010
0.6%
2020
2030
0.4%
Asia
Africa
Tanzania
Senegal
Kenya
Guinea
Ethiopia
Cameroon
Burkina Faso
Viet Nam
Pakistan
Nepal
0.0%
India
0.2%
Bangladesh
Percent of GDP
1.0%
Social protection/social transfers are …
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


an essential development tool and core component of the
social protection pillar of the Decent Work Agenda
especially well targeted to older workers and dependents
and also mitigate vulnerabilities at other stages in the
work/life course;
the main pillar of the DWA to support those workers
outside the formal sector
an essential means for all people across the lifecourse to
benefit from essential services
Social Protection as a core element of DWA needs
to be



•
•
•
embedded in nationally owned DWA /PRSP linked
development programmes with resources
higher up the political and effective aid agenda …ref follow
up to Livingstone Call for Action and G8 aid discussions
Supported more by development partners to enable
practical action to deliver
Accountable and transparent national and integrated
systems – part of good governance agenda
Capacity building and investment in social sector
Universal coverage – from pilots to the big picture
Some conclusions on social protection and Decent Work
‘Without social security neither work nor life in the formal and informal economy
can be decent’ (ILO 2006)
Achieving progressive social security for all is a clear demonstration of
serious investment in people and progressrive eradication of poverty
Investing in social security is a political process; it is not an
unaffordable dream
Action now is needed to ensure social protection/social security is
included and resourced via national development programmes with
support of development partners and our global community of
citizens