There has been much discussion and debate on the kind of institutions and policies that could best address poverty and vulnerability in developing countries. Financing has emerged as a key constraint on the extension of social protection. The paper considers the main sources, and key...

The paper tracks recent changes in the components of social protection in Latin America, the reforms to social insurance in the 1990s and the growth of social assistance in the 2000s, and assesses their effects on poverty and inequality and implications for welfare institutions in the region....