The role and relevance of Social Fund Community-Driven Development (SF/CDD) has been highly debated in the international development community. Some conceive these programs only as parallel and temporary arrangements that can ensure short-term delivery of development benefits. Others emphasize...

Over the last several years, the Government of Togo has made important advances in the area of social protection. Although Togo has had limited social insurance and social assistance programs, the economic shock and natural disasters starting in 2008 brought the need for better mechanisms of...

This report proposes a toolkit which can be used to produce national assessments in MENA countries. The toolkit consists of a series of four questionnaires to be completed by institutions delivering specific programs in the areas of Social Assistance, Social Insurance, Health and Education. A...

The vision of Pakistan's social protection strategy to reach the poor and vulnerable (2007) is 'to develop an integrated and comprehensive social protection system, covering all the population, but especially the poorest and the most vulnerable'. Consistent with this vision, the goals of the...

Tanzania has made significant economic progress in the recent past, with per capita national income almost doubling from United States (U.S.) 230 dollars equivalent in the late-1990s to U.S. 440 dollars. This report explores the role safety nets and transfers can play in reducing poverty more...

The gains from the transition in post-communist Russia were captured by the new managerial class, which won rents from the state in the form of privatized enterprises, state subsidies, credits, and opportunities for tax evasion. Those rents reduced state revenues that could have supported social...