Social Protection Programme for Iraq: Leveraging Effective Response and Accelerating Reform

Project information

• Summary

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  The government of Iraq is engaged in the reform of its social protection sector and services. Its vision is to support inclusion and equity, foster capacity-driven empowerment, bolster economic opportunity and security and ensure sustainability and adaptability. 

  
  With the support of the European Union (EU), the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) have, since 2021, supported the transformation of Iraq’s social protection landscape through the Joint Programme “Leveraging Effective Response and Accelerating Reform" for Social Protection.” 

  
  The Joint Programme aims to support the Government of Iraq to catalyse a more effective social protection response in the short-term and accelerate reform in the medium- and long-term to build a coherent and sustainable national social protection system. 

  
  The Joint Programme has created substantial momentum in shaping the policy environment, the (re)design of schemes, and of delivery systems and operating environment, as well as in supporting capacities for both social assistance and social security, including with regional governments. 

  
  The Joint Programme is being implemented with the Ministry of Planning, the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Trade, including the Central Statistics Organization. 
   

• Phase I: 1 April 2021 - 31 December 2025

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  The overall objective of Phase I of the joint programme is to ensure that by 2024, the vulnerable and the poor, including children, youth, women, elderly, persons with disabilities and internally displaced persons in Iraq benefit from equitable access to integrated social protection system that is inclusive, child and age sensitive, food security and nutrition-sensitive as well as gender and shock responsive. 

  The specific objectives of Phase I aim to ensure that: 

  1. Social protection reform is evidence-based and supported by policy coherence, effective coordination and enhanced institutional capacities to address growing social exclusion and equity gaps including during shocks.
  2. By 2024, pregnant women, under-5 and school age children from poor households benefit from equitable access to integrated social protection programs and services.
  3. By 2024, young people, workers and their families – including those in the informal economy – have enhanced access to comprehensive employment-based social protection schemes and active labour market programmes; and the income security of older-persons and persons with disabilities is improved.
  4. By 2024, vulnerable people will benefit from coordinated management of information systems and strengthened capacities of national and subnational institutions for improved design and targeting of social protection interventions.
• Phase II: 1 February 2024 – 31 October 2027

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  The overall objective of Phase II of the joint programme is to reduce multidimensional poverty and vulnerability in Iraq through an inclusive, shock-responsive, child-gender and disability-sensitive social protection system. 

  By October 2027, the programme aims to achieve the following five specific objectives: 

  1. Improved policy, operational and financing framework for social protection in Federal and Kurdistan regions of Iraq.
  2. Improved access of the most vulnerable populations to integrated social protection benefits and services appropriate to their capacities and needs.
  3. Enhanced access of private sector workers and their families to comprehensive and sustainable social security and active labour market programmes. 
  4. Improved interoperability and data integration between public institutions and government levels for an efficient and effective service delivery.
  5. Increased opportunities of Civil society actors to contribute to the national social protection agenda.

  Phase II: ILO Development Cooperation Dashboard

• Key ILO activities within the project

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  The ILO’s activities within the Joint Programme aim to expand the scope and extend coverage of social security in line with the ILO Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102). They also focus on supporting the Government of Iraq to develop a sustainable vision on a lifecycle approach to social protection but strengthening coordination between social assistance, social insurance and labour market interventions. 

  
  To achieve this, the ILO will focus on the following areas of work:
   

  1. Generate evidence to fill knowledge gaps and support decision-making with a focus on the Iraqi labour-force and the informal economy; the barriers to expanding social security coverage; and the capacity of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA) to effectively deliver social security.
  2. Support legislative reform to expand the scope of social security provision, and align social security legislation with Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102).
  3. Strengthen capacity of the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection to effectively implement social security through support to institutional operations and capacities, IT infrastructure, and human resources.
  4. Identify and implement innovative and inclusive approaches to addressing the demand-side barriers to social security coverage expansion, including in relation to awareness about rights and obligations, but also financial barriers.
  5. Strengthen coherence between social insurance and social assistance to achieve social protection floors, as well as linkages between social insurance and active labour market policies to boost employment and promote decent work.