Social Protection Floor Index: Monitoring national social protection policy implementation

Organization(s): Friedrich Ebert Stiftung
Author: Annalena Oppel, Michael Cichon, Mira Bierbaum, Sander Tromp
Year: 2016
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At the 101st International Labour Conference in 2012, 184 members unanimously adopted the Social Protection Floors (SPFs) Recommendation No. 202, which provides guidance to members for establishing and maintaining SPFs as a core element of their national social security systems, guaranteeing access to essential health care and a basic income over the life cycle. In support of the principle of regular monitoring, the Social Protection Floor Index (SPFI) has been developed.

It assesses the degree of implementation of national SPFs, by detecting protection gaps in the health and income dimension and indicating the magnitude of financial resources needed to close these gaps in relation to a country’s economic capacity. The SPFI thus informs members, trade unions, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders about the need for corrective policy action, compares the implementation of SPFs across members, and, in future, monitors members’ progress over time. In the long run, it is hoped that the SPFI can contribute to achieving a fairer and more inclusive globalization.