This Social Protection for All Issue Brief examines how to extend maternity cash benefits to women in the informal...

These nine national studies cover four regions of the world and reveal the stakes and problems which the multifaceted informal sector poses for the trade union movement, irrespective of the level of development in the countries under consideration. The studies are based on the information available and represent testimonies...

The Guidelines for a just transition towards environmentally sustainable economies and societies for all are both a policy framework and a practical tool to help countries at all levels of development manage the transition to low-carbon economies and can also help them achieve their Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs)...

This report provides the latest ILO data on women’s position in labour markets, examines the factors behind these trends and explores the policy drivers for transformative change. The report provides a picture of where women stand today in the world of work and how they have progressed over the...

The portfolio of policy guidance notes illustrates the ILO’s holistic approach to promoting decent work in the rural economy and brings together the broad range of instruments and tools developed over the past years. The goal of the policy guidance notes is to offer guidance to policy makers, the...

This report includes a forecast of global unemployment levels, looking at the situation in developed, emerging and developing economies, with detailed charts and numbers. The report also focusses on the share of vulnerable employment as well as on the scale of the informal economy. It provides policy guidance to...

Starting in 2007, Mongolia has implemented one-stop shops (OSS) nationwide for social service delivery. This brief explores the Mongolian...

Of the 23 million children under the age of 18 in South Africa, about 60 per cent lives in poverty. The Child Support Grant (CSG), introduced in 1998, initially covered only 10 per cent of poor children. Incremental changes in the eligibility criteria and successful awareness-raising campaigns increased the...

Since 1998, Romania’s Builders’ Social Fund, or Casa Socială a Constructorilor (CSC), has provided income protection for workers in the construction sector during the interruption of work in winter. The CSC is a non-profit organization based on a sectoral social agreement. It operates on a bipartite basis. It is...

The Old Age Pension (OAP) is a tax-based scheme for all older persons. This non-contributory social pension also benefits other household members, particularly children. This brief explores Lesotho’s experience in extending the...

Between 2003 and 2013, the number of people covered by the health insurance system in China increased by ten times and has now achieved universal coverage (96.9 per cent of the population). This brief explores China’s experience in extending health...

This working paper: (i) provides an overview of the global situation of social security provisions for domestic workers in 163 countries; (ii) analyses trends, policies and gaps in terms of legal and effective social security coverage for domestic workers; (iii) describes and analyses the configuration of social security schemes...

This working paper is one of the five country studies on cash transfer programmes and women’s empowerment. The review of the South African experience in this study is complemented by country studies on Brazil, Chile, India and Mexico. Its results have also informed a comparative study, authored by Elaine...

This document was prepared in 2015. It contains, for the constitutions of 21 Latin American countries, a compendium of their provisions that affirm the right to social security, social protection, or social assistance; obligations of the State to protect individuals against specific social risks or to protect specific vulnerable...

Unacceptable forms of work (UFW) have been identified by the International Labour Organization as work in conditions that deny fundamental principles and rights at work, put at risk the lives, health, freedom, human dignity and security of workers or keep households in conditions of poverty. This study contends that...

The report looks at the existing social protection schemes in the ASEAN Member States from the angle of the four guarantees of the social protection floor, that are: health care for all and income security for children (including access to necessary goods and services), those in working age, and...

Cash transfer programmes have been implemented in many countries as a key component of their national social protection floors and because these programmes provide a modest but regular income to poor households, they have the potential to reduce poverty and to enhance women’s economic empowerment. However, there have been...

This policy brief is based on the working paper The Decade of Adjustment: A Review of Austerity Trends 2010-2020 in 187 Countries.  Read the working paper...

This paper: (i) examines the latest IMF government spending projections for 187 countries between 2005 and 2020; (ii) reviews 616 IMF country reports in 183 countries to identify the main adjustment measures considered by governments in both high-income and developing countries; (iii) applies the United Nations Global Policy Model...

This paper identifies conceptual synergies and dissonances between food security and income security. It considers the contribution of mainstream social protection instruments, such as cash transfers, to food security. The paper presents specific food security policies that would strengthen the ability of national social protection floors to address food...

This document was prepared in October 2012 and revised in July 2015. It contains, for the constitutions of 48 European countries, a compendium of their provisions that affirm the right to social security, social protection, or social assistance; obligations of the State to protect individuals against specific social risks...

This working paper presents a series of solutions to the challenging social issues. It builds on the conclusions of “Investing in Child Development and Learning: Ensuring Equity in Decent Work and Sustainable Development,” a forum convened by UNICEF and ILO on 28 February 2012. This paper was used to...

This paper is intended to provide background information and suggest issues for discussion between the Governing Body and the panel members, which can inform and deepen the ILO’s strategy for the adoption of full and productive employment and decent work as an explicit goal of the global development agenda...

This joint ILO/UNEP study shows that, if accompanied by the right policy mix, a green economy can also create more and better jobs, lift people out of poverty and promote social inclusion. It also demonstrates that employment and social inclusion must be an integral part of any sustainable development...

This report addresses two of the defining challenges of the twenty-first century: achieving environmental sustainability and turning the vision of decent work for all into a reality. It shows that not only are both challenges urgent, but they are also intimately linked and will have to be addressed together....