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Informal employment has been growing rapidly in recent decades in developing countries. It represents today between half and three quarters of non-agricultural employment in the majority of these countries. The proportion of informal employment is even greater when agriculture is taken into account. Informal employment is generally a larger source of employment for women than for men. The majority of poor and extremely poor workers are found in the informal economy.
Informal economy workers, and in particular women, often work in the most hazardous jobs, conditions and circumstances, and are especially vulnerable and unable to defend themselves against natural and man-made hazards and problems. The vast majority of these workers are not covered by social security schemes, occupational safety and health measures, working conditions regulations and have limited access to health services.
The International Labour Conference (ILC), in its 89th session in 2001 on social security and in its 90th session in 2002 on the informal economy has placed the extension of coverage to excluded people, in particular in the informal economy, as the new priority of the ILO in the field of social security. As a follow-up, the ILO launched in 2003 the Global Campaign on social security and coverage for all.
This new priority has been translated by the Social Security Department into several strategic directions.
For further information contact by email:
Philippe Marcadent
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Health Micro-Insurance Schemes: Feasibility Study Guide, Volume 1 and 2 (pdf 2406 KB)
In many developing countries, the number of health micro-insurance schemes is increasing rapidly. In order to be sustainable and capable of growth, these schemes must be well-designed from the start. This Guide will assist promoters of health micro-insurance schemes in achieving this. It describes the preconditions for setting up a scheme, and most importantly, the characteristics needed to ensure the scheme’s viability and effectiveness. The Guide is organized in two volumes: Volume 1 focuses on “procedures” and provides stakeholders with step-by-step assistance in carrying out the feasibility study; Volume 2 focuses on “tools” and, for each step, offers practical support in applying the procedure.
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