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Link: http://epri.org.za/courses/chiang-mai-course-2019/

Delivering Social Protection:

Should we raise the bar?

23 October 2019

Dr. Michael Samson

msamson@epri.org.za

A course for policy-makers, government officials and practitioners around the world

Designing and Implementing Social Protection Systems

Overview: Implementation systems

◼ Integrated systems

◼ Central role of the MIS

◼ Developmental payments

◼ Developmental MIS

◼ Conclusions

Harmonised and developmental delivery systems:

the cutting point of the diamond

Political

leadership

Socio-economic

policy planning

Delivery

institutions

Health EducationSocial

DevelopmentAgriculture

Implementation lessons

Implementation is more important than design

Capacity building is often the key factor

Build developmental delivery systems

Role of public/private co-operation

The importance of a communications strategy

Again, learn from global lessons of experience –

but ground the programme in the nation’s social and

policy context

An Agent

Transporting Cash

for G2P Payments

7

Delivery systems--

Case 1: Smart card bank accounts

• South Africa’s Grinrod Bank opened a smart card bank account

for every social cash transfer beneficiary.

• The special account offered a free package of basis services.

• The Government of South Africa paid a small service charge to

the bank for delivering the grants at no cost to the beneficiary,

and reduced its costs by over 90%.

• Beneficiaries also lowered their costs to accessing their

benefits—eliminating the need to travel (sometimes for hours)

to fixed paypoints and improving the reliability of delivery.

• But unscrupulous financial operators have abused the

system, defrauding beneficiaries with sophisticated

electronic schemes, while consumer protection mechanisms

have lagged behind.Source: EPRI (2017)

8

Delivery systems--

Case 2: Debit card accounts in Pakistan

• Pakistan’s emergency response programmes employ debit cards

linked to basic transaction bank account products targeted

specifically at the needs of social grant recipients

• Features:

• No minimum balance requirement.

• GoP pays a one-off grant of $233 at UBL Bank on behalf of

poor families affected by 2010 floods

• Usable at partner banks ATM for fee or VISA POS

• Debit cards can be expeditiously distributed after targeting

• Nearly 70% of beneficiaries expressed desire to convert debit

accounts to savings accounts

• 400,000 previously unregistered beneficiaries received ID cards

Source: World Bank-GFDRR

9

Case 3: Smart card at agents

• HSNP’s first phase paid bi-monthly benefits to

households in arid N and NE of Kenya

• Payments were executed by Equity Bank, via a

bank account which is accessed via a smart card

• Smart card could be accessed via agents (shop

keepers) appointed by bank in areas where there

are

• Followed a specialized

procurement process which

promoted financial inclusion

Source: Ferrand (2007), Pulver (2008)

10

Case 4: Mobile phones

• Chars Livelihood Programme (funded in partnership with DFAT

and DFID) provided stipends to beneficiaries, a total Tk. 8,100 is

distributed over 18 months), with bKash delivering the services.

• Pilot of 433 beneficiaries successful, expanded to 8 districts.

Over 3 phases of programme, 22,278 beneficiaries received

mobile payments

• Advantages: more secure, less resource intensive & less

leakages than cash delivery-ability to receive remittances on

mobile from family members working in other areas of

Bangladesh.

• More importantly, beneficiaries strengthened their access to

developmental financial, communications and information

services.Source: CLP (2014)

Developmental payments

MIS enables choice

Immediate requirements for rapid implementation often

mandate expedient systems (e.g. manual payments

processes)

Pilot implementation arrangements can open the door to

future systems in a more developmental manner

An MIS can enable recipients to select the delivery system

most appropriate for their needs

Bolsa Familia makes transfers to beneficiaries using electronic

benefit cards for use at ATMs, and reduced the cost from

14.7% to 2.7% of the grant value, from 2001 to 2005.

Implementation lessons

Implementation is more important than design

Capacity building is often the key factor

Build developmental delivery systems

Role of public/private co-operation

The importance of a communications strategy

Again, learn from global lessons of experience –

but ground the programme in the nation’s social and

policy contextHow is the FDI

constructed? From

Brazil’s

“Single Registry”

What is Brazil’s Family Development Index?

The Family Development Index (FDI) is a composite indicator developed to measure

the degree of "vulnerability" of a family. It is calculated for each family unit

by aggregating the data for individual family members. The FDI ranges from 0 (poorer development)

to 1 (better development), likeother multidimensional poverty indicators.

The FDI analyses six dimensions of development:

absence of vulnerability,

access to knowledge,

access to work,

resource availability,

child development and,

housing conditions

– each representing the ability of families to satisfy their basic

needs effectively.

Family Development Index - Municipalities of North Region

0,00

0,25

0,50

0,75

1,00

Vulnerability

Access of Knowledge

Access of labor

Availability of resources

Child development

Household Conditions

MARIA 16424231766

IDF of the family 0,28

IDF - municipality of

ACRELANDIA 0,48

First decile (State)

Median (State)

Third quartile (State)

Family Development Index (IDF)

0.00

0.25

0.50

0.75

1.00Vulnerability

Access of Knowledge

Access of labor

Availability of resources

Child development

Household Conditions

Family Development Index - Municipalities of North Region

JANAINA 16275200015

IDF of the family 0.77

IDF - municipality of MANCIO LIMA

0.48

First decile (State)

Median (State)

Third quartile (State)

Family Development Index (IDF)

Perceptions of social protection

“The Minister of Social Development should recommend Acrelandia for the new automobile plant.”

A: strongly agree D: somewhat disagree

B: agree E: disagree

C: somewhat agree F: strongly disagree

Perceptions of social protection

“Countries should invest aggressively in developmental delivery systems, even if this increases the fiscal costs

and programme risks, because it is important to maximise the economic growth impacts.”

A: strongly agree D: somewhat disagree

B: agree E: disagree

C: somewhat agree F: strongly disagree

Perceptions of social protection

“The purpose of social protection delivery systems is to deliver the right benefit to the right person at the right

time. This should be the priority, not incurring extra cost and risk to turn these into development programmes.”

A: strongly agree D: somewhat disagree

B: agree E: disagree

C: somewhat agree F: strongly disagree

Delivery lessons: conclusions

How we deliver social protection programmes is more important

than how we design them!

Capacity building is often the key ingredient for success.

Today, we know how to deliver effectively—the big question

now is how to build developmental delivery systems to

strengthen equitable growth impacts.

Again, while it is useful to draw on the global lessons of

experience – it’s also essential to ground the programmes in the

nation’s social and policy context.

Discussion question: How can my country deliver social protection

in a manner that strengthens developmental outcomes?

Course Unifying Exercise

Country Presentations

What to think about…

Making the case for change

(1) what works?

(2) what doesn't?

(3) why?

(4) make the case for change

(5) how?

Social Protection in My Country…What works?

…What doesn’t?

Consider all the dimensions covered in the course… and more.

• Is my country’s social protection system aligned to the main life cycle

vulnerabilities people face?

• Are the most necessary programmes in place?

• Are they appropriately designed? And effectively implemented?

• Do they reach the people who need them?

• Do they contribute broadly to sustainable development?

• Do they rely on developmental delivery systems?

• Do they protect people’s rights?

• Do they build developmental synergies with other core government

interventions?

And why?

What accounts for your country’s most important social protection

successes?

Why doesn’t the system work as effectively as possible?

What lessons explaining success and failure can you share?

Are these causal drivers of success and failure specific to your country or

are they similar to factors in other countries?

If you could make one change to your country’s social protection system,

what would it be?

What change would you propose?

What gap in the social protection system does this change address?

Why hasn’t this change been already implemented?

How would you implement this change?

What key stakeholders must be persuaded?

How much will the change cost? What non-financial resources are

required?

What key stakeholders will implement the change?

How will the change interact with other sectoral interventions to broadly

support sustainable development?