WELFARE PROGRAMS FOR THE GLOBAL ERA: LESSONS FROM THE U.S. EXPERIENCE

Poverty has been ubiquitous throughout history and across nations. It exists even in the richest nations amidst the unprecedented prosperity of the 21st century. The promises of the global era do not lessen the urgency of coping with the poverty problem of the society. This paper introduces the performance of the social safety net measures of the United States in dealing with poverty. It focuses on the effectiveness of the welfare reforms of 1996. Based on the US experiences, we purport to draw policy lessons universal to any society coping with poverty.