UNRISD

UNITED NATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA), UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre (IRC)

and UN Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD)

Social Policy:

Towards universal coverage and transformation for achieving the MDGs

24-25 May 2006 Hyatt Regency Hotel, Kathmandu

Wednesday 24 May

Time :9:00- 10:30 Session I : Opening Chair: Dr Suomi Sakai, Representative, UNICEF Nepal Speakers: Ms Cecila Lotse, Regional Director, UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA): Bringing social policy discourse to the MDGs and to child rights issues Dr David Parker, Deputy Director, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre Dr Peter Utting, Deputy Director, UNRISD Keynote Address Professor Sir Richard Jolly, Institute of Development Studies, Sussex Social Policy with a Human Face: Contributions of the UN to economic and social policy: lessons from the first 60 years and current challenges for South Asia Time: 10:30-11:00 Tea Break Time : 11:00 -13:00 Session II : Transformative social policy: vision and reality Chair: Dr David Parker, Deputy Director, UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre Social policy plays a key role in development, not only in terms of social protection, but also by promoting equity through redistribution and gender justice, economic development through human capital formation, and social and national cohesion. Contemporary

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approaches to social policy in developing countries often focus narrowly on aspects such as social protection, targeting and safety nets. It is important to consider the multiple roles of social policy, real-world examples of “transformative social policy”, and how such an agenda might be promoted. Key interventions

�� Dr Peter Utting, Deputy Director, UNRISD, Social Policy in a Developmental and Political Context

�� Ms Ratna Sudarshan, Director, Institute of Social Studies Trust, Delhi, Gender-sensitive macroeconomics and impact of public policy on social inclusion and social transformation

�� Ms Gabriele Köhler, Regional Advisor Social Policy, UNICEF ROSA: An introductory overview of inclusive/transformative social policy initiatives in South Asia

Time : 13:00-14:00 Lunch break Time : 14:00-16:00 Session III: MDGs in South Asia: challenges for social policy in light of social exclusion Chair : Dr Peter Utting, Deputy Director, UNRISD This session will discuss how various forms of social exclusion in South Asia (income, class, gender, caste, location, faith), social consciousness and shortcomings in social policy responses converge and result in unmet promises and commitments on the MDGs and other indicators of child rights and child well-being. Key interventions

�� Professor Naila Kabeer, Institute of Development Studies, Sussex: Challenges to social policy and social protection of excluded groups

�� Mr Yap Kioe Sheng, Chief, Poverty Reduction Section, Poverty and Development Division, UN ESCAP, MDGs progress and challenges in South Asia

�� Dr David Parker, Deputy Director, Innocenti Research Centre: Child poverty and social exclusion

�� Ms Annie Namala, Indian Institute of Dalit Studies: Impact of caste-based discrimination on children in India – and countervailing policies

�� Dr Robert Jenkins, Key issues in social exclusion in India Time : 16:00-16:30 Tea break Time : 16:30-18:30 Session IV: Country policy and programme experiences Chair: Ms Gabriele Köhler, Regional Advisor, Social Policy, UNICEF ROSA This session will examine South Asian experiences in social policy, with a focus on recent institutional policy reforms and innovations. Key interventions

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�� Mr R. Bandyopadhyay, Advisor, Rural Development, Planning Commission of India: The Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme as a Form of Welfare State Politics

�� Dr Santosh Mehrotra, Regional Advisor on Poverty and Governance, UNDP Regional Centre Bangkok: Institutions and Policies: Analysing the North-South Divide in Child and Women’s Health, Nutrition and Education Outcomes in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu

Movie 18:30 -19:00 ( Optional) A FUTURE WITHIN REACH (on MDGs in ASIA) Produced by ESCAP, UNDP and ADB RECEPTION 19:00 - 21:00 ****************************************************************************************************** Thursday 25 May

Time : 9:00-10:45 Session V: Financial resources and government capacity to deliver social services Chair: Dr Santosh Mehrotra, Regional Advisor, Governance and Poverty, UNDP Government financial capacity to deliver social services is a function of institutional history, evolving principles, and a variety of instruments. The session will look into the government budgeting and allocation processes and outcomes. Key interventions

�� Dr Katja Hujo, Research Coordinator, UNRISD: Financing social policies in developing countries – what are the issues?

�� Dr Naresh C Saxena, Advisor, UNICEF India, Social Sector Budgets and Programme Delivery in Uttar Pradesh

�� Dr Robert Jenkins, Chief of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, India UNICEF Country Office: From Outlays to Outcomes: Child Budgeting Approaches in India

�� NN: The 20/20 Initiative in Nepal and monitoring the MDGs at the local level for social inclusion

Time: 10:45-11:15 Tea break Time : 11:15-13:00 Session VI: Revenue generation and financing modalities Chair: Ms Frances Turner, Deputy Regional Director, UNICEF Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA) Examining patterns in South Asia, comparisons with other regions/models, and policy choices, this session will look into forms of financing social services, with a focus on two key

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areas of social policy in the light of MDG objectives: education and health. Key interventions

�� Dr David Parker, Deputy Director, UNICEF IRC: Emerging issues in social services finance – involving user fees and charges

�� Dr Enrique Delamonica, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning: Integration of Economic and Social Policies: The transformative role of public spending

�� Dr Axel Weber, Social Protection Specialist, South Asia Department, Asian Development Bank: Comprehensive social policy approaches addressing poverty and human development

�� Mr Devi Prasad Prasai, Research Management Adviser, Support of Safe Motherhood Programme, Nepal: Health systems and health policy: an overview

�� Dr Mahesh Patel, Regional Advisor on Social and Economic Policy, UNICEF East Asia and Pacific Regional Office: Decentralization and Primary Education – Impact on quality, inclusion, capacity

Time: 13:00-14:00 Lunch Time: 14:00 - 16:00 Session VII: The politics of social policy and the need for a rights-based approach to social policy Chair: Professor Naila Kabeer, Institute of Development Studies (IDS) A variety of factors determines or at least influence the outcomes of social policy. They include access, affordability, appropriateness of social services and enabling service providers to provide adequate services. This requires integrating a child-rights approach into social policy delivery, as well as adopting measures to raise awareness and behavioural change, so as to address internalised social exclusion. This in turn calls for participation and empowerment of excluded groups and individuals. The session will also look into the role of and synergies of social policy in democratisation processes. Key interventions

�� Ms Elizabeth Gibbons, Chief, Global Policy Section, UNICEF Division of Policy and Planning: Rights-based Approaches to Social Policy - Principles and Experiences

�� Mr Louis Georges Arsenault, Representative, UNICEF Bangladesh: Interface of civil society and public policy in changing results for children in Bangladesh

�� Dr Suomi Sakai, Representative, UNICEF Nepal: Aspects of reaching users. Considerations from Nepal

�� NN: Democracy and social policy Time: 16:00- 16:30 Tea break Time: 16:30-18:00 Session VIII: First synthesis of ideas on transformative social policy Chair: Ms Cecilia Lotse, Regional Director, UNICEF ROSA This session will serve to wrap up key findings and chart course for further work.

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Keynote Speakers

�� Dr Jomo Kwame Sundaram, Assistant Secretary-General, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), UN Secretariat: The case for transformative social policy

�� Panel: Child rights, MDGs and social policy - in South Asia and globally – the research agenda and the agenda for social policy reform

Vote of thanks Gabriele Köhler, Regional Advisor, Social Policy, UNICEF ROSA

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