Call to switch development funds from low-impact ‘poor relief’ to effective investment
Criticism in the UK media that the Government is exporting a welfare system for the poor to developing countries through financing cash transfer schemes should not be dismissed out of hand, claims Stephen Kidd, CEO of Development Pathways, in a new blog published by Oxfam.
IMF urged to re-think loan conditions that hit social protection spending
4th July: Development Pathways joins over 50 groups in writing to the IMF to ask that it re-think the conditions that it applies to loans that reduce spending on social protection and other investments in people.
Debate over universal basic income steps up as IMF weighs impacts
14th August: An IMF paper has backed universal basic income as a better way of supporting low-income households than existing safety net programmes when these are “inefficient”. The paper, using...
Support impactful programmes, not cost-cutting, IMF told as it reviews social protection approach
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been advised to focus on the impact of social protection programmes and not only their cost in its new framework for social protection. The...
What lies behind the thinking of those driving development at the IMF?
The IMF’s Independent Evaluation Office rarely lives up to its pretention to operate in real independence from the Fund, as its name implies, writes Peter Bavkis. One is hard-pressed to cite IEO reports that embrace thorough critiques of IMF policies, despite their frequency in academic circles and among civil society...
Free at last! Kyrgyzstan’s liberation from poor relief, with universal social security for children
In April 2018, a new law will enter into force in Kyrgyzstan which abolishes its main poor relief scheme and replaces it with a system of universal child benefits. This is a major step forward in Kyrgyzstan’s attempt to build an inclusive, lifecycle social protection system, since the nation already...
Pro-Poor or Anti-Poor?
Stephen Kidd considers the growing role of the World Bank and IMF in shaping national social protection policies as questions are being asked about their approach to the issue.
Role of IMF-backed elimination of universal social protection in protests
Widespread protests in Iran have followed continued decline in real incomes in the country. Like the ITUC, several media have identified declining living standards and plans that would further worsen these as the root cause of the protests. For example, a New York Times article stated: “The initial catalyst for the anger...
The IMF admits “narrow focus on poverty targeting,” but workers see “no clear change in policy”
The IMF has acknowledged it has had an “overly narrow focus on means-tested targeting” in social protection and that life-cycle benefits have some advantages. The details of the new IMF social...
“Redistributive” social protection key tool for addressing rising inequality, says global coalition
Rising inequality is a setback for the Sustainable Development Goals and must be combatted by improving coverage and adequacy of social protection systems, according to the Global Coalition for Social...