Social security
Only 20 per cent of the world’s population has adequate social security coverage and more than half lack any coverage at all. The ILO actively promotes policies and provides assistance to countries to help extend adequate levels of social protection to all members of society. Social security involves access to health care and income security, particularly in cases of old age, unemployment, sickness, invalidity, work injury, maternity or loss of a main income earner. A “Global Campaign on Social Security and Coverage for All” launched in 2003 aims at extending coverage at the national level.
Since its creation in 1919, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has actively promoted policies and provided assistance to countries to supply adequate levels of social protection to all members of society. Access to an adequate level of social protection is recognized in the Declaration of Philadelphia on the aims and purposes of the ILO, in subsequent ILO declarations and in a number of international labour standards as a basic right of all individuals. Furthermore, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights recognize the right to social security for everyone.
The Declaration on Social Justice for a Fair Globalization (2008), and more recently the ILO Global Jobs Pact (2009) have reconfirmed the role of social security in contributing to equitable and sustainable economic and social development.
Situation Analysis
All Arab countries in the region provide some forms of social security coverage. In most countries, pension schemes provide old age, survivor, disability and work injury benefits. Social security faces a variety of challenges, some of which are common to many countries in the region. Although economic performance has been relatively favourable in large parts of the region, economic growth has not fully translated into a sufficient increase in quality employment and better social protection. While across the region, women’s labour force participation rates are rapidly increasing, female labour force participation is still low by international standards. Unemployment and underemployment, namely of women and young people, are likely to have effects on Arab societies’ human capital in the short and in the long run. This is particularly relevant for those parts of the region which struggle with current or past political and economic crises. As a consequence, high – and in some countries growing – informality and an associated lack of social protection coverage leave a large proportion of the population vulnerable. The extension of social protection to uncovered groups of the population is therefore a major concern.
Scope of the Problem
In most countries of the region, the existing social security schemes focus on the provision of pensions while other risks – such as unemployment, maternity or sickness – are not or only partly covered. Some of the existing pension insurance schemes in the region face challenges in terms of effectiveness, equity, sustainability and governance, while large groups of the population remain out of the scope of coverage. Another concern is access to affordable quality health care for the population. Non-contributory social security schemes, such as social assistance schemes, tend to be fragmented and weakly coordinated with contributory schemes.
A number of countries in the region have embarked on initiatives which aim at consolidating and strengthening social insurance schemes, introducing new branches and extending coverage. Likewise, reforms of non-contributory schemes focus on enhancing targeting mechanisms and the effectiveness of the schemes.
Strategy of the ILO Regional Office
For many years, the ILO has been providing technical assistance and advice to ILO member states in the field of social security. This includes country-specific technical cooperation activities, regional initiatives and research and development activities
The ILO Regional Office in Beirut works closely together with the Social Security Department at the ILO’s Headquarters in Geneva and the ILO’s International Training Center in Turin.
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