Asia-Pacific Social Protection Week 2023

The keynote highlighted “The role of Social Protection in Promoting Inclusive Growth and Social Cohesion”. It discussed the interlinkages between social protection and economic empowerment as fundamental elements within the definitions of inclusive growth and social cohesion. This included the need to design and develop inclusive, intersectoral and integrated solutions that address holistic visions of development and human well-being in Asia and the Pacific as the region navigates an uneven economic and social recovery from recent shocks.

ADB’s Social Protection Directional Guide 2022-2030 highlights promoting integrated solutions to achieve amplified development impact as a key strategic objective for ADB’s support to developing member countries for social protection. Social protection measures can be used to improve access to basic services. Many such intersectoral complementarities are already well pronounced in social protection programing such as that of health insurance and social assistance towards universal health coverage and positive health outcomes, between skills development, training and labor market interventions towards positive employment outcomes etc., while others remain relatively underexplored. This panel was built from the keynote presentation for Day 2 on “The role of Social Protection in Promoting Inclusive Growth and Social Cohesion” and discussed the need for and examples of integrated and inter-sectoral planning approaches for improved social protection outcomes promoting human capital development.

Poverty is a cause and consequence of social exclusion, which prevents people from attaining a minimum level of well-being and developing their potential. Age, caste, ethnicity, gender, and disability are some of the most common factors associated with social exclusion. In Asia and the Pacific region, nearly half the population has no social protection coverage. Many countries spend less than 2% of their GDP on social protection (excluding health). Almost 70% of the labor force is in informal employment outside contributory schemes and migrants are often not eligible for social protection. Beyond cash transfers, social protection programs such as childcare; care and support services for older persons and persons with disabilities; and youth programs have a key role in promoting social inclusion and gender equity. This session investigated the evidence and explored how such social protection programs uphold the SDG agenda to ‘leave no one behind’. It also discussed the implications of persistent informality, changing labor force dynamics and demographics in implementing ‘social protection systems and floors for all’ (SDG 1.3) across the life-course.

Governments in the Asia and Pacific region spend the least of any world region on active labor market policies (ALMPs) – less than 0.2 per cent of GDP on average, a small fraction of the average outlay in OECD countries. This is surprising given the region’s need: a regional workforce of 2.1 billion people, two thirds of whom work in the informal economy in predominantly low- and middle-income countries and where underemployment is endemic. The main objective of ALMPs is to facilitate the insertion of those wanting to work into better employment than would prevail without such assistance. The objective is of particular importance in a region still reeling from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic that pushed 243 million into or back into poverty, and in which the equivalent of 255 million full-time jobs were lost, and, more generally, where a skills deficit leaves many millions ill-equipped to advance and benefit from an increasingly knowledge-based, digital economy. Are ALMPs a good investment? Do they work? For whom and at what cost? This session explored the above questions and more on the role of active labor market programs on the road to recovery and reactivation in Asia and the Pacific.

Social protection for economic inclusion (the graduation approach) reduces poverty and builds resilience. Robust empirical evidence confirms that holistic support for very poor and vulnerable people—through a combination of social assistance, psycho-social support, and economic empowerment interventions—helps them move out of extreme poverty. Benefiting from a combination of cash transfers, livelihood support, financial inclusion and connection to social services, each participant is mentored and supported with careful coaching for the duration of the program. Economic inclusion programs are designed to address both immediate needs and underlying causes of multidimensional poverty, and often build on existing social assistance programs. ADB is supporting more than a dozen such initiatives in seven countries in Asia and the Pacific, including in the Philippines, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and India. In this session, participants heard from officials and technical experts who are supporting economic inclusion programs at different stages of implementation, from pilots to wider integration in national programs.

Many countries are facing significant challenges in extending social health protection coverage and improving affordable access to health services for their populations. On the other hand, some countries where social health protection coverage is high are suffering from sustaining its fiscal sustainability. In countries which adopt social health insurance, one of the main challenges in extending coverage to populations is slow increase in voluntary enrolment, where households either do not purchase health insurance, or do so only when anticipating illness. Related barriers are a lack of government fiscal capacity and the increasing precarity of employment, especially in the informal sector. In countries which adopt tax-financed systems, priorities from other sectors usually crowd out required health and social protection budgets. Countries in the region are grappling with key questions on how to improve the coverage, sustainability, and responsiveness of social health protection given the changing nature of work as well as pressures on the government budget and macroeconomic situation. This session invited various actors who are leading the provision of social health protection in their respective countries through different financing approaches to help address the above questions and shared experiences in extending social health protection in Asia and the Pacific.

Gig workers in Asia and the Pacific are individuals who engage in short-term or project-based work arrangements that are facilitated by digital platforms or intermediaries. These workers are often referred to as "platform workers" or "digital gig workers." The rise of gig work and other new forms of work is an important issue for social protection in the Asia and the Pacific, as many of these workers may not have access to traditional forms of social protection, such as pensions, health insurance, and unemployment benefits. The conditions of these jobs mimic those of informal employment. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the challenges faced by gig workers, shedding light on the issue. Across the Asia-Pacific region, many countries implemented a wide range of social protection programs for gig workers to support them during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include initiatives for Grab drivers in Malaysia and food delivery workers in Thailand, encompassing various forms of assistance, such as monthly cash transfers, food coupons, and access to medical care. Additionally, in response to the pandemic’s impact on freelancers and gig workers, the Indonesian government launched the pre-employment card program, which provided training, health insurance, and financial assistance to these workers. In Malaysia, the government took steps to partially subsidize contributions to a work-injury scheme, benefitting employees in the gig economy. Across the Asia-Pacific region, many countries implemented a wide range of social protection programs for gig workers to support them during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given this background, this session’s objective was to discuss what constitutes the gig economy, what are its key issues, and how can social protection measures extend for gig workers, including expanding on the role of the government and the private sector.

According to the ILO, only 28% of persons with disabilities in Asia and the Pacific are covered by social protection programs, compared to 68% of the general population. COVID-19 has made existing inequalities worse for persons with disabilities – spotlighting the urgent need for expansion of existing social protection program to be more inclusive, but also to ensure that systems and programs further develop to respond to specific needs. Now, as social protection becomes a central and institutionalized instrument for poverty reduction in more and more countries, policy makers and practitioners are looking for practical approaches to make sure that these systems are more inclusive of persons with disabilities. This session highlighted the progress made, continuing gaps and innovations in social protection systems and programs to support economic and social integration of persons with disabilities.

Globally research suggests that most social protection policies and programs pay limited attention to conflict until circumstances force them to do so. Policies and programming are prone to conflict-blindness. There is also limited ongoing contact between those responsible for social protection, peace and security, and disaster risk management. Commitments to state-building, national ownership and building national systems often ignore the dilemmas inherent in supporting states that are parties to ongoing conflicts and the political rather than technical challenges involved. The session was led by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and examined how far approaches to social protection in the Asia Pacific are conflict-sensitive and displacement-inclusive. The session discussed emerging policies and programmatic practice regarding the use of social protection instruments to bridge humanitarian assistance and longer-term resilience-building in crisis-prone and fragile contexts. It explored the engagement modalities best suited to dynamic situations in often low-capacity environments. The discussion addressed current knowledge gaps on how these instruments are most effectively adapted to fragile contexts and how they can be made more responsive to hard-to-reach populations and intersecting vulnerabilities (including gender, climate change, and displacement).

This keynote address highlighted the evolving global and regional priorities for social protection and discuss the significance of collaborations, strategic planning and commitment to financing to strengthen social protection systems globally and in Asia and the Pacific. In particular shared an overview of a range of global initiatives led by the ILO, including the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for a Just Transition, the Global Coalition for Social Justice and ILO’s work on standard setting for platform economy, among others. It discussed the implications for and the participation of countries in Asia and the Pacific in such global initiatives and the range of support available to them.

Plenary Panel Discussion

The expansion of inclusive digital financial services, in tandem with digital and financial literacy for poor and vulnerable communities, is critical for the effective delivery of social assistance. Several issues continue to affect social assistance delivery payment systems in the Asia-Pacific region. Some of these include limited access to financial services; lack of digital infrastructure, including internet connectivity and mobile networks; insufficient interoperability between relevant systems; lack of digital ID systems; shortage of trained staff to manage social assistance programs and payment systems; digital literacy, inadequate monitoring and evaluation as well as insufficient funding. This session invited experts to answer key questions such as: What are the key constraints to expanding digital financial services in our region? What opportunities exist to digitize social assistance payment systems? How should collaboration between the public and private sector look like in the delivery of social protection benefits?

Many social assistance programs in Asia and the Pacific lack adequate monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, which can make it difficult to assess their effectiveness and identify areas for improvement. Connecting evidence and policy is essential for the effective design, implementation, and monitoring of social protection. Many countries in the region have limited resources to invest in M&E systems, including staff, funding, and technical capacity. In some countries, there are weak data systems that lack standardization and quality control mechanisms. This can make it difficult to collect and analyze data on social protection programs, which can hinder evidence generation and policy decision-making. Also, even when evidence is available, there may be limited use of it in policy-making processes. Measuring the impact of social protection programs can be challenging, particularly in contexts where there are multiple interventions and complex social and economic dynamics This session invited experts in the domain to reflect on the significance of data, evidence and monitoring and evaluation towards informing social protection policy and programing in Asia and the Pacific.

As an important gathering of social protection stakeholders, including national governments, development partners and private sector solution providers across the region, the APSP provides a critical platform to discuss and identify challenges, opportunities, innovations, and the way forward for this whole of government approach to strengthen digital social protection. The discussions under this session were dedicated to this purpose, in particular, inviting experts and country representatives to share global and regional experiences in supporting digitally enabled whole-of-government approaches to social protection planning and implementation.

1.3 billion people in Asia and the Pacific are employed in the informal economy. In South Asia, the informal economy accounts for around 80% of non-agricultural employment. In Southeast Asia, the number is 60% of non-agricultural employment while in East Asia, the informal economy accounts for around 30% of nonagricultural employment. Many of them face issues with access to both social assistance and social insurance, underbar working conditions, little access to finance to invest in their businesses or cope with financial emergencies. Informal sector workers often also lack access to training and skills development opportunities, which can limit their ability to earn a living and adapt to changing economic conditions. This session discussed experiences from Asia and the Pacific, on social protection systems responding to the needs of informal sector workers, who constitute a significantly large share of the region’s workforce.

Inclusive care and support systems are essential for developing human capabilities, achieving equal socio-economic participation, and ensuring functioning societies. It is widely recognized that investing in care and support systems has economic and social paybacks through a triple dividend: by facilitating women’s labor force participation; creating decent jobs in paid care sectors and enhancing individuals’ capabilities throughout the lifecourse. There is clear need to tackle the inherent tension between providing more and better-quality care and support services for children, persons with disabilities, and older populations and implications on gender equality for predominantly women and girl caregivers. This requires innovating new and context-specific approaches that are inherently multisectoral solutions in nature and require contributions across a variety of sectors to develop truly inclusive care and support systems that better serve care and support users and caregivers in the communities in which they live. This session delved into the development of inclusive care and support systems that are responsive to the needs of users of care and support such as children, persons with disabilities, and older age populations, while reducing burden and gender inequality for predominantly women and girl caregivers.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need to identify and target poor and vulnerable households for social protection in Asia-Pacific. To do this, policymakers and development practitioners were using new tools and data to improve targeting and ensure that social protection programs reach those who need them most. Some of them were digital and mobile technologies, such as mobile phone surveys and digital identity systems were used to collect and analyse data on household incomes, assets, and vulnerabilities. For example, in the Philippines, the Department of Social Welfare and Development is using GIS to map poor and vulnerable households and identify areas where social protection programs can be most effective. Also, Social registries linked to other databases, such as health and education records, can improve targeting. This session invited panelists to share global and regional experiences in using novel data sources to supplement traditional social protection data sources, aiding in better identification, and targeting of social protection initiatives.

Numerous studies highlight the positive impact of cash transfers on various outcomes, including health, nutrition, education, and poverty reduction, especially for households with children. However, cash transfers alone are not a ‘silver bullet’ for addressing children’s needs and reducing poverty. Cash "plus" interventions combine cash transfers with complementary support critical to children's well-being. These may include additional benefits, in-kind transfers, behavior change communication, psychosocial support, and facilitating access to external services, such as healthcare and education. In Asia and the Pacific region, countries are moving toward integrated social protection systems that require inter-ministerial coordination. Rather than burdening the social protection entity alone, this approach seeks to connect various services to address children's comprehensive needs. This session aimed to explore what cash plus or integrated approach means for children in Asia and the Pacific. The session sought to unpack the opportunities, challenges, and lessons to implement integrated programming to increase access to and quality of essential services and drew implementation insights from countries in South and South-East Asia.

After three stimulating days of sessions and discussions on social protection in a changing world, the closing session convened experts to reflect on the main takeaways from the week and spark some final ideas for the audience before they leave. The session began with a summary by social protection experts on the top 10 key takeaways from APSP 2023, covering a wide range of topics in social protection. This was followed by a panel discussion compromising of country representatives to provide reflections and share opportunities on the future of social protection in the Asia Pacific region. The session ended with closing remarks by the Senior Director of the Sectors Group.