Why is social protection important?

Now we will look at the impacts of social protection and how it can help people throughout their life, including in times of disasters.

Social protection helps individuals and families to look after themselves and protect themselves from poverty. We all have times in our lives when it is harder to work and to have enough money.

The video explains how life is full of ups and downs, and how social protection can help people in times of need. This could include, for example, in sickness, after a family death, or when someone is too old to work.

Regular, predictable social protection helps us throughout our life.

Pay for the things we need like food and power
Access services like health and education
Save money
Start a business
Contribute to our family and community

Did you know?

Global evidence shows that good social protection programs can help improve social outcomes.

Childrens' health, nutrution and growth

Childrens' education (including girls' education)

Gender equality

Social inclusion for other vulnerable populations

Disability inclusion

Read about how old age benefits can support older women in the Pacific5

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Read more about how social protection impacts people with disability in the Pacific6

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To learn more about the impacts of social protection, read this 2016 global evidence review, “Cash transfers: What does the evidence say?”, written by the Overseas Development Institute.7

Learn more

5. Satriana, S., & Attenborough, J. (2023, May 2). Old age pensions in the Pacific: benefits for women. Devpolicy Blog from the Development Policy Centre.
6. Partnerships for Social Protection. (2022, December 16). Disability-inclusive social protection. Partnerships for Social Protection.
7. Bastagli, F., Hagen-Zanker, J., & Sturge, G. (2016, July 16). Cash transfers: what does the evidence say? Overseas Development Institute.

Did you know?

Social protection helps people to recover from big shocks and disasters.

Giving people money during a disaster means that:

People can keep buying food and things they need

People who work can still go to work

People are less likely to resort to negative strategies like selling assets to get money

Many countries have used social protection like cash transfers to respond to disasters such as COVID-19, tropical cyclones, and volcanic eruptions.

Learn about social protection responses to COVID-19 in the Pacific and Timor-Leste8

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8. Beazley, R., Gorman, H., Satriana, S., & Attenborough, J. (2021). SPACE Social protection responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Pacific: A tipping point for the sector? SPACE

The Pacific faces ongoing shocks and disasters. Climate change is adding to the region’s risk level.

Social protection systems can be used to help people manage climate change and other risks, including helping them to prepare, respond and recover from shocks.

Social protection can also help communities and boost local economies.

The video explains how social protection can create a multiplier effect. People who have money can buy more things, which helps the people who sell things and then creates more work. More work means more things are being made and the money is shared with more people.

Did you know?

In some countries, there is evidence that for every dollar invested in social protection, more than a dollar is made from local markets – this is what we call the ‘multiplier effect’.

This video explains how when emergency cash transfers are injected into markets, multiplier effects can yield long-term development and enable crisis-affected communities to rebuild their livelihoods.

Reflection

Reflecting on what you have read so far, how else might social protection support people to deal with climate change related shocks?

Mythbuster activity

There are lots of myths and perceptions related to social protection that you may have heard before. Here is one example.

You might hear people say that social protection will make people lazy. Do you think this is true or false?

Select your answer by clicking the buttons below.

There is no systematic evidence of cash transfers making people lazy.

Reflection

Let's think about cash transfers. How do you think they support and promote resilience in the Pacific Islands and Timor-Leste?