United Nations Research Institute For Social Development Research Articles

Special issue: The poverty‐inequality‐environment frontier in the age of crises

This Special Issue is part of a joint initiative on “Financial Crises, Poverty, and Environmental Sustainability” by the Sussex Sustainability Research Project (SSRP) of the University of Sussex, the UNDP-UNEP Poverty-Environment Action for Sustainable Development Goals, and the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). The aim of the project is to foster an evidence-based understanding of the multiple and complex ways in which poverty and environmental dynamics interact in moments of economic crises and how this interaction can be managed in a way that facilitates the transition to sustainability. The Special Issue includes the following papers: 1. The Great Stagnation and environmental sustainability: A multidimensional perspective Bernardo Cantone, Alexander S. Antonarakis, Andreas Antoniades (University of Sussex) 2. Confronting inequality in the ‘New Normal’: hyper-capitalism, proto-socialism and post-pandemic recovery Tim Jackson (University of Surrey), Peter A. Victor (York University, Toronto) 3. Transformative social policies as an essential buffer during socio-economic crises Isabell Kempf, Paramita Dutta (UNRISD) 4. Alleviating debt distress and advancing the Sustainable Development Goals Howard Haughton (King’s College London), Jodie Keane (Overseas Development Institute - ODI) 5. Bracing for the typhoon: Climate change and sovereign risk in Southeast Asia John Beirne, Nuobu Renzhi (Asian Development Bank Institute, Tokyo), Ulrich Volz (SOAS) 6. Climate shocks and poverty persistence: Investigating consequences and coping strategies in Niger, Tanzania, and Uganda Vidya Diwakar, Antoine Lacroix (Overseas Development Institute – ODI) 7. Class and climate change adaptation in rural India: Beyond community-based adaptation models Maryam Aslany (University of Oxford), Shannon Brincat (The University of the Sunshine Coast)

Negotiating Gender Justice between State, Religion, and NGOs: A Lebanese Case

This article explores part of the process of passing a law in the Lebanese Parliament on 1 April 2014 called “Law on the protection of women and other members of the family from domestic violence,” also known as the ‘Protection Law’ or Law 293. In a United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) project on Religion, Politics and Gender Equality, the theorists José Casanova and Anne Phillips are engaged in establishing a transnational perspective on religious gender politics. The article then draws on written documentation regarding the discourse connected to the draft law at that time and on field interviews. The interviews were conducted in the period 2013–2016 with religious leaders and resource persons in Christian, Sunni, and Shi’a communities in Lebanon, and with key persons in the NGOs KAFA and ABAAD. An analysis of the arguments for and against the law before it was passed displays the larger field of intersection between feminism and religious practices and the consequences of the Lebanese dual court system. As a study from the Lebanese context when Law 293 was being intensively discussed, the article shows both the authority and the vulnerability of the religious leaders associated with the dual court system. The article also reveals the ambiguity of feminist activists and NGOs toward the role of the religious communities and leaders in Lebanon.

Introduction: Reflecting on the human right to social security

AbstractThe United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 asserts that social security is an inalienable human right. Realizing this human right is often considered, simply, as a matter of political will and of administrative aptitude. In these terms, the progressive realization of the human right to social security may be viewed as the outcome of an appropriately‐resourced political and bureaucratic process. Such a perspective, however, is clearly inadequate. Characteristically, bureaucracies are designed to cater to the needs of all, based on common procedures and common deliverables designed for the “typical” case. Yet such approaches often lack the necessary flexibility and resources to make a distinction between individuals, which acknowledge their respective differences and needs. To meet the international commitment to progressively realize universal social security coverage, social security administrations are key actors. However imperative this role may be, if the pursuit of this commitment fails to respect people's differences this will put at risk the meeting in full of what is envisioned by the human right to social security. To this end, this special issue aims to foster an understanding that the goal of universal coverage must necessarily also respect and respond to the individual needs of each and every person.

Obstacles to Increasing Tax Revenues in Low Income Countries

This paper is focused on the question: why do the governments of low income countries not raise more tax revenues? Two different but complementary approaches are used to answer it. The first approach is comparisons: among countries today, and within countries over time. This approach tends to generate relatively conservative answers to the central question. It leads to an emphasis on the ‘sticky’ nature of the taxation. For any individual country in 'normal times' – i.e. excluding situations of war, major internal conflict, the collapse or rapid reconstruction of state power - revenue collections, measured as a proportion of GDP, do not change much from year to year. This is partly because effective taxation systems require a great deal of coordination and cooperation between revenue agencies and other organisations, both inside and outside the public sector. It is hard quickly to improve the effectiveness of a complex organisational network. The 'stickiness' of tax collections also reflects the fact that the overall tax take – i.e. the proportion of GDP raised as public revenue – is to a significant degree determined by the structure of national economies. For logistical reasons, it is much easier to raise revenue from economies (a) that are high income, urban and non-agricultural and (b) where the ratio of international trade to GDP is high. The government of the average low income country raises less than 20 per cent of GDP in revenue. It makes no sense for such governments to aim to match OECD tax takes of 30-45 per cent of GDP.A joint paper by the International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) and the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). This paper has been co-funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and as part of the IDS project ‘The Governance of Service Delivery.'

Gender, family and care provision in developing countries:Towards gender equality

This article describes the way in which the scientific literature approaches the issue of gender and care in developing countries, and also examines some of the main analytical trends which have contributed to this debate. The analysis of the documentation published on this subject is far from exhaustive. These works are also partially biased, and tend to base their analyses of care from a gender perspective in developing countries on certain conceptual and theoretical works on care which take as their point of reference the capitalist economies in developed countries. The analysis presented in this article therefore endeavours to go beyond economicist interpretations of development by introducing the gender perspective, and seeks to quantify unpaid care work in relation to gender equality. The aim of this research work is to contribute empirical evidence on the reproduction of gender inequality in the context of developing countries in the light of feminist theories by going beyond economicist approaches to economic and social development. The analysis essentially involves measuring the amount of paid and unpaid work done by women as compared to men using secondary data from different statistical sources compiled by the project carried out by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) on Political and Social Economy of Care. Thus, the basic objective of this work is to provide empirical evidence to highlight the importance of care in achieving gender equality, by developing social and gender policies designed to neutralise these inequalities and thereby to advance the construction of a social and democratic citizenship with no gender distinctions, in the context of developing countries.

Co-Operation as a Remedy in Times of Crisis Agricultural Co-Operatives in the World Their Roles for Rural Development and Poverty Reduction

The author of this publication traces the origins of the relatively bad image which co-operative societies are having even today among most international and bi-lateral technical assistance and donor organisations.From 1975, when the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) issued the verdict that co-operatives are unsuitable to serve as agents of change, because they are either small, inefficient and insignificant or – when economically successful – they are serving the better-off, reinforce existing social hierarchies and fail to reduce poverty.The author tries to lift the ideological fog usually covering this topic by starting from clearly defined terms when analysing the roles, agricultural co-operatives can play, their potentials, limitations and preconditions to succeed in reducing poverty. It is shown by quoting directly from relevant documents of the United Nations, World Bank, FAO and ILO, how registered state-controlled pseudo-co-operatives depending on external support were erroneously taken to be co-operative societies and have tarnished the image of genuine co-operative self-help.After defining what genuine co-operatives are, and the difference between co-operatives for the poor, of the poor and open to the poor, it is discussed how a re-orientation of development policy could improve the chances of genuine co-operatives to allow people with limited means to work themselves out of poverty by co-operating.

Migration and social protection: Claiming social rights beyond borders – Edited by Rachel Sabates‐Wheeler; Rayah Feldman

Internationale Revue für Soziale SicherheitVolume 65, Issue 2 p. 145-148 Migration and social protection: Claiming social rights beyond borders – Edited by Rachel Sabates-Wheeler; Rayah Feldman Katja Hujo, Katja Hujo United Nations Research, Institute for Social, Development (UNRISD), Genf, SchweizSearch for more papers by this author Katja Hujo, Katja Hujo United Nations Research, Institute for Social, Development (UNRISD), Genf, SchweizSearch for more papers by this author First published: 05 June 2012 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1752-1726.2012.01432.xRead the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume65, Issue2April‐Juni 2012Pages 145-148 RelatedInformation

Learning from South Korea’s development experience: Report on the UNRISD-KOICA methodology workshop for the project “Making Development Cooperation Effective” leading to the HLF-4 in Busan

Research ongoing by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) titled ‘Making International Development Cooperation Effective’ started with the assumption that careful reading of the experience of South Korea is definitely rewarding to those with an interest in making aid effective for development.

Cash transfers, social protection and poverty reduction

Slater R. Cash transfers, social protection and poverty reductionInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 250–259 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare.Cash transfers form an important and growing part of social protection programming in many developing countries. This article evaluates the use of different types of cash transfers in different regional contexts as a tool for reducing poverty and inequality in developing countries. Particular attention is paid to knowledge about the appropriateness and cost‐effectiveness of targeted versus universal cash transfers and about conditional versus unconditional transfers. The article finds that a fine balance is required. On the one hand, overambitious procedures for targeting or conditionality should be avoided where administrative capacity is low. On the other hand, to rule out any possibility of conditionality or targeting on the grounds of weak administrative capacity leaves only the option of universal transfers.

Social policy and poverty: an introduction1

Hujo K, Gaia E. Social policy and poverty: an introductionInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 230–239 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and International Journal of Social Welfare.This Guest Editorial introduces the context and main themes around which this collection of articles on social policy and poverty is framed. Against the backdrop of calls for accelerated progress towards achievement of the Millennium Development Goals in a context of multiple crises, the role of social policy for social development and poverty reduction is highlighted. Three key themes are addressed by the five contributions in the collection: (1) the role of social protection, in particular cash transfers, in poverty reduction; (2) the importance of labour markets and labour market policies for poverty reduction; and (3) the financing of welfare policies. The guest editors conclude that social protection policies should be grounded in values of social justice and human rights, which calls for strong state commitment towards universal programmes. They further point to the need of institutionalising long‐term social policies that benefit from broad‐based political support and are grounded in sustainable financing mechanisms.

Financing welfare regimes: mapping heterogeneous revenue structures

Gough I, Abu Sharkh M. Financing welfare regimes: mapping heterogeneous revenue structuresInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 280–291 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare.This article studies how the composition of public revenues in terms of sources (such as taxation, social insurance contributions, mineral rents, foreign aid) is associated with different welfare regimes and social policy outcomes. It is divided into two halves: a review of literature and research, and a cross‐national data analysis. The first half reviews literature on the emergence of tax and revenue systems in the West, and on the relevance of these frameworks and findings to developing countries. The second half uses cluster analysis to identify groups of developing countries with contrasting revenue systems in 2000, and then compares these with our previous analysis of welfare regimes in the global South. We conclude that higher tax or revenue levels are not associated with more advanced or effective welfare systems. It is only the scope of social security contributions that correlates with proto‐welfare states in the developing world.

Social protection and poverty

Barrientos A. Social protection and povertyInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 240–249 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare.In the last decade, social protection has emerged as a policy framework employed to address poverty and vulnerability in developing countries. The article links social protection to new perspectives on poverty and vulnerability, identifies and discusses key issues in the emergence of social assistance programmes in developing countries, and assesses their potential contribution to addressing poverty and vulnerability in the South.

Taxation, developmental state capacity and poverty reduction

Di John J. Taxation, developmental state capacity and poverty reductionInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 270–279 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare.This article argues that policy instruments in taxation are likely to be more effective when one views taxation not only in terms of administrative capacity, but also when tax is viewed in wider developmental processes. Much of the literature and policy on taxation explores how to improve taxation in terms of administrative capacity without examining what policies are needed to improve the incentives of taxpayers to comply. The article provides examples of how tax reform can be more usefully employed when linked to explicit production strategies. It also argues that the success of improved tax collection needs to be assessed, not simply in terms of revenue increases, but also how these increases affect distributional outcomes and political stability.

Labour market policies, poverty and insecurity

Standing G. Labour market policies, poverty and insecurityInt J Soc Welfare 2011: 20: 260–269 © 2011 United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), International Journal of Social Welfare © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd and the International Journal of Social Welfare.The article sets out to evaluate the performance of the conventional labour market and social policies in the era of globalised labour markets in terms of poverty alleviation, equality and security. To this end, it develops a framework based on three key policy evaluation principles, centred on the normative notion of social justice, whereby the expansion of full freedom requires basic economic security for all. After summarising main labour market trends, the article proceeds by analysing conventional labour market policies, targeted labour schemes, regulatory interventions and cash transfers as labour market policy.

The reform of the developmental welfare state in East Asia

This article examines social policy reforms in East Asia and whether the welfare states in the region became more inclusive in terms of social protection while maintaining their developmental credentials. It draws on findings from the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) project on social policy in East Asia, covering China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, Japan, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Taiwan Province of China, and Thailand. It shows that East Asian economies responded differently to the crisis in terms of welfare reform. While Singapore and Hong Kong maintained the basic structure of the selective developmental welfare state, Korea, Taiwan, and, to a lesser extent, Thailand implemented social policy reforms toward a more inclusive one. Despite such different responses, policy changes are explained by the proposition of the developmental welfare state: the instrumentality of social policy for economic development and realization of policy changes through democratization (or the lack of it).

Social Policies and Water Sector Reform

Increasing coverage and maintaining infrastructure are two of the biggest challenges confronting the water supply sector in both industrialized and developing countries. The last two decades have witnessed reform in this sector that has resulted in increased private sector participation (PSP), and it is now time to investigate whether such reform has managed to increase access without creating additional burdens, especially on the poor. A research project carried out by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), Social Policy, Regulation and Private Sector Involvement in Water Supply, has demonstrated the shortcomings of concession-type contracts and how regulation in developing countries is faced with major challenges. Based on this research, the present paper demonstrates that, in such circumstances, regulation should be complemented by social policies when reforming the water sector.This paper draws lessons from seven country studies: Brazil, Burkina Faso, Colombia, Great Britain, France, Hungary and Malaysia. All of these country studies show the shortcomings of PSP and how social policies are crucial in addressing the issues of access and affordability. The choice of social policies varies from country to country. In France and Great Britain, heavy public investment was used to ensure universal access to piped water. In these countries, even with high regulatory capacity, social policies in the water sector have been crucial. For example, in France, they consist mainly of ex-post assistance to those who cannot afford to pay their water bills, operating a fund for rural water supply and prohibition of disconnection. Social policies in Great Britain include income support based on property values, subsidies, a ban on disconnections, various forms of social security support and social assistance in paying water bills. In addition, there exists an effective and independent economic regulatory body.In the case of Colombia, a subsidy helps provide the poor with access to affordable water. In addition, investment commitments prescribed to the private sector have been useful in increasing coverage. Similarly, in Brazil, the desire to make water supply universal led to heavy investment in the 1970s, and effective social policies (cross-subsidies) helped to increase coverage among the poor. However, the current impasse on whether the state or municipality has the right to grant concessions to the private sector is jeopardizing further progress. The government in Hungary provides subsidies to regions that have high production costs. In addition, industrial users cross-subsidize domestic consumption, and income transfers by central or local authorities shoulder some of the households' burden of water expenditures. Tariffs are kept low (a hidden social policy) and no disconnection is allowed in the case of non-payment of bills. The private sector has increased efficiency in the system, but investment is financed by the state. In Malaysia, the social policies that are in place comprise state financing of water supply in rural areas, cross-subsidy (industrial users to domestic) and a lifeline block tariff. In addition, the private sector is contractually obliged to increase coverage in urban and rural areas. In Burkina Faso, although the efficiency of the network has substantially improved with commercialization through PSP, there is growing pressure to dismantle social policies.

The Costs and Benefits of Migration to Sending States: the More You Look, the Worse It Gets

The Costs and Benefits of Migration to Sending States: the More You Look, the Worse It Gets

Global Oil Trends and their Effect on the Middle East

Global Oil Trends and their Effect on the Middle East

Agrarian change, gender and land rights

1. Editorial Introduction: Terence J. Byres and Henry Bernstein (both at University of London). 2. Agrarian Change, Gender and Land Rights: Shahra Razavi (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD), Geneva). 3. Global Capitalism, Deflation and Agrarian Crisis in Developing Countries: Utsa Patnaik (Jawaharlal Nehru University). 4. Policy Discourses on Women's Land Rights in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Implications of the Re-turn to the Customary: Anne Whitehead (University of Sussex) and Dzodzi Tsikata (University of Ghana). 5. Piety in the Sky? Gender Policy and Land Reform in South Africa: Cherryl Walker. 6. Securing Women's Interests within Land Tenure Reforms: Recent Debates in Tanzania: Dzodzi Tsikata (lives in Durham). 7. Gender and Land Rights Revisited: Exploring New Prospects via the State, Family and Market: Bina Agarwal (University of Delhi). 8. The Cry for Land: Agrarian Reform, Gender and Land Rights in Uzbekistan: Deniz Kandiyoti (University of London). 9. Women's Land Rights and Rural Social Movements in the Brazilian Agrarian Reform: Carmen Diana Deere (Universty of Massachusetts).

Social integration: Approaches and issues

The World Summit for Social Development, to be held in Copenhagen in March 1995, will consider three closely inter-related themes: decreasing poverty, reducing unemployment, and enhancing social integration. With the support of the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) has been mobilising its worldwide network of scholars, activists, and development practitioners to promote reflection on major social issues, channel new information and ideas into the Summit preparatory process, and build public support for a successful Summit. To illustrate some of this work, we reproduce below the Summary of a Briefing Paper written by Cynthia Hewitt de Alcantara.