Global Social Policy in the Post 2015 Development Agenda

Perspectives and key policies messages - South Centre

Mariama Williams

The South Centre the South Centre was established in 1995 as a permanent intergovernmental

organization of developing countries. In pursuing its objectives of

promoting South solidarity, South-South cooperation, and coordinated

participation by developing countries in international forums, the South Centre

has full intellectual independence. It prepares, publishes and distributes

information, strategic analyses and recommendations on international economic,

social and political matters of concern to the South.

The South Centre enjoys support and cooperation from the governments of the

countries of the South and is in regular working contact with the Non-Aligned

Movement and the Group of 77 and China. The Centre’s studies and position

papers are prepared by drawing on the technical and intellectual capacities

existing within South governments and institutions and among individuals of the

South. Through working group sessions and wide consultations, which involve

experts from different parts of the South, and sometimes from the North,

common problems of the South are studied and experience and knowledge are

shared.

Social Policy • Social policy (both national and global) are more important

in these times of shocks, and crises that bode persistent risks for households and individuals

• As noted by the GA, proactive social protection especially heavy investment in social protection is of critical importance

• Many developing countries, see SP, especially social protection as long term investment that can have powerful impact on social development and poverty eradication

• They also see ‘South–South cooperation can also play an important role through experience sharing, transferability of lessons, and relevant technical assistance in promoting human development-oriented social protection policies’

Imperatives for Social policy pre and post 2015

Global social policy must be undergirded by: Addressing Economic transformation Greater attention to shocks – global (the 4 Fs) and local

(planetary boundaries including climate change—sudden and slow onset events): building Resilience & improving social and other vulnerability.

Four pillars Policy approach: • Structural flexibility at international level • Structural flexibility at national level • Means and mechanisms to challenge Inequality • Means of implementation (finance, Technology

Transfer and capacity building) • The role of South-South cooperation

Climate change, social Policy & social protection

Climate change impacts of sudden or slow onset events. Climate change is a serious risk to poverty reduction and threatens to undo decades of development efforts (AfDB et al 2012). • Climate change and health • Climate change and poverty • Climate change and human rights • Climate change and migration • Positive impacts of climate change adaptation

(reducing vulnerability of the poor) & mitigation (clean energy).

Climate change and social protection

• Climate change impact poor communities and deepen risks and vulnerability of the poor

• Implication for food security and livelihood Thus climate change impacts need to be explicitly assessed and monitored in relation to human development outcome (World Bank 2011) • Climate change adaptation is a major challenge to

human development (IPCC 2007) • The focus is on building resilience which is

grounded in equitable social protection, risk and disaster risk management and CCA sustainability (World Bank 2011)

Social protection, climate change adaptation and DRR

SP, DRR and CCA Are increasingly being integrated to improve resilience and vulnerability to both sudden and slow onset climate hazards. Facilitated through for example: • Social safety nets for coping with natural disasters and shocks; Livelihoods

programs which help people retain or rebuild assets base Social funds for community-based adaptation Projects which combines these there domains are in process in Ethiopia, Rwanda and Mongolia etc. Additionally, the World Food Programme, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF):’ examine linkages between social protection and climate change in a more detailed national context’ Source: International workshop: Making social protection work for pro poor disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation, Addis Abba 2011, World Bank, UNECA.

Key message regarding CCA and SP

…greater recognition of the contributions that SP, CCA and DRR can make to sustainable development.

This matters because of increasing concerns that SP,

CCA and DRR interventions will not work in the long

run if they continue to be applied in isolation from each

other. Moreover, there is much to gain from deepening

integration between these three areas, in terms of

reducing vulnerability and poverty even in the face of

worsening climate impacts and/or natural hazards. WB 2011

Key message set 1: SP and CCA

• Breaking out of silos: • Recognizing where integration is already

occurring and learning from it: • Not reinventing the wheel • Bringing a human-centered approach: Source: Addis Abba workshop , WB 2011 Support for international mechanism for loss and damage Building integrating social protection into National adaptation programme of Actions (NAPAs) and National Adaptation programmes

Structural international Flexibility for Enlightened International cooperation

A development friendly global economic environment and mechanism to address spillovers and shocks to developing countries as well as address multilateral rules that promotes sustainable economic development and growth. Macroeconomic and financial policies that engenders Employment creation Balancing trade, investment and Intellectual property regime that adversely impacts health, including access to medicines, climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts. Debt-workout mechanism A Stability and Social Investment Facility for the SIDS (Dervis and Birdsall (2006) )

Structural flexibility in national context

National level policy must pivot around at least four core issues: 1) high priority to social development, including poverty eradication and promoting equality implementation of rights based approach to food, hunger and targeted improving and promoting food and nutrition; 2) food security and agricultural production that also boost the capacity of male and female rural producers. There must also be gains of gender equitable and women’s empowerment; 3) industrial policy based on clean energy, energy efficiency and which also promotes adaptation and climate resilience in the key sectors of the economy, within households and communities; and 4) strategic integration f trade, investment and finance in pursuit of sustainable and equitable national development.

Means of implementation

• Finance

• Technology transfer

• Capacity building

South-South Cooperation and global social policy

• There are multiple mechanisms geared to achieve poverty eradication, including employment generation (schemes), infrastructural schemes, specifically designed poverty eradication program(s) and social protection measures

• South-South cooperation can be an important flexible and effective framework for enhancing these mechanisms.

South-South

• According to the UN 2009 report on the topic, South-South cooperation is particularly crucial in addressing the impacts of the current economic crisis as well as the progress made in the achievement of the internationally agreed development goals, the MDG by 2015.

• China, India, Saudi Arabia and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela each have contribute over $ 1 billion in development assistance. Overall the total flows of South-South developmental assistance for 2010 is expected to be at least $15 billion (based on pledges),

South-South

Countries such as Brazil, Nigeria and South Africa are also making substantial contributions to the LDCs, both through multilateral and bilateral mechanisms. Venezuela through the Africa South American Partnership (ASA) is very involved in the fight against hunger and poverty in the Africa region. The South Centre welcomes greater South-South cooperation as a sign of ‘increasing sense of confidence, self-reliance and optimism and solidarity’ among the countries of the South.

South Centre work in the area • Working with developing countries such as India and Brazil to

ensure the continued availability and access to cheap generic drugs Monitoring the impacts of: • Impacts of FTAs & TNCs Affecting Health Policies • The Right to Health and Medicines: The Case of Recent

Negotiations on the Global Strategy on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property Research Paper 35, January 2011

• Pharmaceutical Innovation, Incremental Patenting and Compulsory Licensing. Research Paper 41, September 2011

• Rethinking Global Health: A Binding Convention for R&D for Pharmaceutical Products. Research Paper 42, December 2011

• Working with developing countries such as LDCs to ensure food security etc. and more balance trade and investment rules

• Working with developing countries to ensure equitable access to sustainable development in the climate negotiations as well as balance in the financing of adaptation and mitigation

• The South Centre is also support developing countries with:

Developing and implementing national IPR strategies that are supportive of poverty eradication and promoting access to health and medicines beyond HIVAIDs.

Appreciation & Thank You

• Multilateral cooperation premised on South-South cooperation and North-South engagement is necessary for the global community to be able to effectively address the challenges defining our times – climate change, the global financial crisis, trade relations and development (including poverty eradication).

In this regard we thank Finland for its commitment and consistent support and its perseverance and persistence with multilateralism