Income Support Schemes in Pacific Island Countries: A Brief Overview

This paper seeks to discuss which formal income support schemes administered by the state exist in PICs, especially with regard to vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities, older persons, children or the poor. The first part of the paper assesses vulnerabilities by discussing the socio-economic environment in Pacific island countries. The second part lists and briefly discusses existing income support schemes and briefly assesses their adequacy in terms of coverage, access, benefits, and targeting compared to needs in society. It concludes with a summary of recommendations on the adequacy of existing income support schemes to build resilience in societies and recommendations on policy interventions to move towards universal coverage of social protection.