Thursday, October 10, 2024
Poverty headcount in Asia and the Pacific could increase by more than 15 percentage points in some countries, given the current low social protection expenditure levels in the region, according to new estimates. In a pessimistic scenario, about 266...
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
The analysis assesses poverty and poverty reduction in the U.S. compared to six other high-income countries—Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, and the United Kingdom—that reduce poverty more than the U.S. does and/or achieve lower...
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
Evidence from Mauritius shows the consequences of losing a formal job in a labour market characterised by high rates of informal employment are significant. Unemployment benefits help mitigate these effects, while generating only small disincentive...
Wednesday, March 30, 2022
Both savings and social protection systems are important, and, on some level, they respond to similar needs: they can help us navigate uncertain futures, stabilise consumption across financial peaks and troughs, and enable us to invest in all kinds of...
Monday, March 28, 2022
Labour market regulations are important determinants of productivity and labour market outcomes. They can protect workers’ rights, enhance job security, and improve working conditions. However, overly- restrictive regulations can also increase business...
Monday, January 24, 2022
Remittances are a lifeline for many people in Asia and the Pacific. The money sent by migrant workers to their families from abroad cover their day-today costs and investments. In countries with a high rate of emigration, remittances are a major source...
Monday, December 6, 2021
When Minister of Finance Grant Robertson announced in this year’s budget that his government was developing a social unemployment insurance scheme, people could have been forgiven for seeing this as largely positive.
The views, thoughts and opinions...
Wednesday, November 3, 2021
COVID is forcing us to rethink and recalibrate our approach because many people have lost their income, their jobs, their family members, their assets and their savings. This has led to poverty, poor health and much more unbearable situations to the...
Wednesday, November 3, 2021
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit women particularly hard, exacerbating existing gender gaps. Not only are women disproportionally represented in the worst affected industries such as retail, food services and hospitality, but many were forced out of the...
Saturday, October 23, 2021
Sri Lanka needs to work on its pre-retirement social-security systems such as unemployment benefits and wage support as COVID-19 pandemic slashed 150,000 jobs in the country affecting mostly youth and middle-skilled workers, a Colombo-based think tank...
