Yisak Tafere (Ethiopian Center for Child Research at EDRI) and Keetie Roelen (IDS) 26 October 2018 Addis Ababa

1. The role of social protection in
improving child wellbeing and
care in Africa
Yisak Tafere (Ethiopian Center for Child Research at EDRI)
and Keetie Roelen (IDS)
26 October 2018
Addis Ababa

2. Outline
• Setting the scene
• Social protection – does it reach poor and vulnerable children?
• Social protection – does it change lives of children and their
families?
• Social protection for children in Africa – where next?

3. Setting the scene
Child poverty in Africa has reduced
but remains widespread
- 20% of children in SSA grow up in
extreme monetary poverty (UNICEF and
World Bank 2016)
- two-thirds of children in SSA live in
multidimensional poverty (OPHI 2017)
Social protection has rapidly
expanded as mechanism for
reducing child poverty
- SDG target 1.3: implement nationally
appropriate social protection systems
and measures for all, including floors
- sixth International Policy Conference
on the African Child in 2014
established a 12-point plan to
advance child wellbeing in Africa
through social protection (ACPF 2014)

4. Setting the scene
What is child-sensitive social protection?
“Child-Sensitive Social Protection (CSSP) refers to social protection
programmes or a system of programmes that aim (i) to maximise positive
impacts on children, when and where appropriate and (ii) to minimise
potential unintended side effects or perverse incentives. This
encompasses both direct interventions (i.e. child-focused or targeted)
and indirect interventions.” (Roelen & Karki-Chettri, 2016)

5. Reaching the poor and vulnerable children
Target groups as a proportion of all programmes in African social protection programmes (Cirillo and Tebaldi 2016, 11)

6. Reaching the poor and vulnerable children
Percentage of children and households receiving child and family benefits, by region, (ILO, 2017)
‘Missing children’
Children outside of family
care, in institutional care,
living on the streets,
children on the move

7. Changing children’s lives – income effect
Proportion of studies reporting significant and positive impacts (based on Bastagli et al. 2016)

8. Changing children’s lives
Indirect income effects
- Greater income security reduces
psychological stress, improving
wellbeing
- Availability of cash improves intra-
household relations, relations
between peers and within the
community
- Reduced concerns about how to meet
basic needs can improve cognitive
capabilities
Beyond income:
Additional components in addition to
cash can lead to behavioural and social
effects, both positively and negatively:
- Coaching and training can reinforce
income effects
- Behaviour change communication can
change feeding practices and improve
positive outcomes
- Work requirements may pull children
into work

9. Where next?
• Exploring ‘cash plus’ approaches
• Paying closer attention to balance between paid and unpaid
work for caregivers, and their children
• Linking social protection and child protection – comprehensive
and promotive (human capital development)
>> Recognising that social protection does not lift structural
constraints that keep children and families trapped in poverty