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In a world filled with risk and potential, social protection systems help individuals and families especially the poor and vulnerable cope with crises and shocks, find jobs, improve productivity, invest in the health and education of their children, and protect the aging population. Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group supports universal access to social protection, and is central to its goals of ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity.

Universal social protection coverage includes: providing social assistance through cash transfers to those who need them, especially children; benefits and support for people of working age in case of maternity, disability, work injury or for those without jobs; and pension coverage for the elderly. Assistance is provided through social insurance, tax-funded social benefits, social assistance services, public works programs and other schemes guaranteeing basic income security.

Social protection systems, figure prominently in the (SDGs). Goal 1.3 calls for the implementation of ¡°nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and vulnerable¡±.

Social protection systems that are well-designed and implemented can powerfully shape countries, enhance human capital and productivity, reduce inequalities, build resilience and end inter-generational cycle of poverty. Well-designed social protection and labor programs are cost-effective, costing countries only about 1.0¨C1.5 percent of GDP.

Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group¡¯s annual lending on social protection programs in fiscal year 2016 reached $3.6 billion with $2.5 billion lending in Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ countries, targeting the world¡¯s poorest. These resources support social safety net programs, including cash transfers, public works, and school feeding programs.

Jobs, too, are critical in reducing poverty and promoting prosperity. All countries, regardless of income, face challenges creating and sustaining adequate job opportunities for their citizens. Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group is ensuring that individuals are equipped and trained with the right skills for the labor market. 

Last Updated: Mar 20, 2017

Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group¡¯s lays out ways to deepen World Bank Group¡¯s involvement, capacity, knowledge, and impact in delivering social protection programs.

The strategy calls for a systematic approach that addresses fragmentation and duplication in programs, helping to create financing, governance and solutions tailored to countries¡¯ context.

The strategy takes into account the importance of having well-functioning social safety nets, proven to reduce poverty and inequality, promote access to health and education among poor children, and empower women; and sustainable social insurance programs that help cushion the impact of crises on households. In addition, the strategy promotes effective policies for productive employment which help people gain access to labor markets and accumulate skills, both during recovery from economic crisis and in normal times.

Finally, the strategy ensures that harnessing knowledge underpins the World Bank Group¡¯s work on social protection by generating evidence and lessons to inform effective policies; promoting South-South knowledge exchange, and providing global leadership in research, analysis and data management.

In 2012, the World Bank launched the  as the first global compilation of data from household surveys documenting social protection. It provides a worldwide snapshot of social protection coverage, targeting, and impact on well-being by identifying countries¡¯ social protection programs, grouping them into categories, harmonizing core indicators, and detailing people¡¯s well-being. Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ also offers cross-country data for mandatory pension systems around the world.

Last Updated: Mar 20, 2017

World Bank Group support for social protection programs has achieved the following:

• To respond to the extreme drought in the Southern Africa region, cash transfers have become the primary response to support the recovery of disaster-affected population in Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique.
•  reaches about nine million people in poor and chronically food insecure households. The program now includes a gender action plan that supports and benefits women that participate in the program. 
• In Brazil, the World Bank-supported  program covered 12 million poor households (about 25% of the population) by providing monthly payments to families that send their children to school, meet vaccination requirements, and utilize health services. The program is also more Brazilians from falling into poverty given the country¡¯s current economic crisis.
• In Mexico, the Prospera conditional cash transfer program has benefitted nearly six million families and has been replicated in 52 countries.
• The ±Ê³ó¾±±ô¾±±è±è¾±²Ô±ð²õ¡¯ Pantawid conditional cash transfer program has helped improve enrollment of poor children in basic education and helped provide maternal care to poor families, helping reduce poverty at the national level.
• A project in Bangladesh is providing cash transfers to 600,000 mothers from poor households as source of income while improving their children¡¯s nutrition and cognitive development.
• ³Ò³ó²¹²Ô²¹¡¯²õ  provided more than 600 grants to small businesses, providing skills training and promoting innovation and entrepreneurship for young people.
• Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ Group¡¯s State of Social Safety Nets 2015 reports that some 773 million of the poorest still lack safety net coverage ¨C especially in lower-income countries and urban areas. The report calls for more efficient and effective safety net programs to close the coverage gap.
• Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ reports: Golden Aging ¨C Prospects for Healthy, Active and Prosperous Aging in Europe and Central Asia and Aging in East Asia highlight the challenges of an aging population and identify opportunities for healthy, prosperous lives. 

Last Updated: Mar 20, 2017

In September 2016, the World Bank Group and the joined forces to achieve social protection for all. The new partnership will expand social protection measures worldwide as part of a global effort to combat poverty and rising income inequality.

Å·ÃÀÈÕb´óƬ receives support from the Russian Federation, Norway, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Sweden, and currently assists 80 activities worldwide through the . It provides catalytic resources in small amounts to help low-income countries build social protection and labor systems, so that they are prepared for future crises.

In order to strengthen countries¡¯ social protection systems, the World Bank together with development partners launched the . ISPA is a set of tools that help countries develop standardized delivery mechanisms in designing social protection systems, allowing for the effective and coordinated delivery of social protection programs to beneficiaries.  

Last Updated: Mar 20, 2017