Institute of Development Studies

Social Protection in Asia (SPA)

'Pioneering research and knowledge partnerships to promote public action for livelihood security in a changing world'

SPA is a research, advocacy and network building programme which aims to overcome barriers to the extension of social protection to poor and marginalized groups in Asia. The programme seeks to identify and promote innovative forms of social protection which contribute to sustainable poverty reduction and development.

SPA Research

The most recent phase of the programme (2007-2010) has been concerned with the extension of social protection to those sections of the population who are excluded from formal social security systems and who must either work for their living in the informal economy or are dependent on others who do. These people constitute the majority of the population in Asia and pose a major challenge for conventional models of social security. They are often amongst the poorest sections of their country's population and therefore least likely to be able to contribute to the taxes which fund state provision of social protection. They are also least able to purchase their own forms of protection from market providers or build up the asset base that might provide them with a degree of resilience in the face of crisis. They rely largely on informal safety nets which, as the earlier East Asian crisis demonstrated, are often strained to their limits in times of generalised crisis.

The SPA research agenda therefore focuses on social protection interventions that have the capacity to address some of the barriers to the establishment of more comprehensive social protection systems that address the needs of these difficult-to-reach groups. We were interested in going beyond evaluation of specific interventions to consider how they might contribute to this broader goal. The research has been carried out in six Asian countries: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam and China. It covers a variety of schemes and interventions in these countries, including:

• Keluarga Harapan Programme in Indonesia
• National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India
• New Co-operative Medical Scheme in China
• Disaster management and emergency social protection in China
• Targeting the Ultra-poor in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan
• Schemes for extending protection to migrants in China
• Community-based initiatives for the elderly in China
• Land regularisation schemes in Pakistan
• Tenure security in urban India 

SPA Networking, Communications and Advocacy

The SPA Network

• builds partnerships for regional research and advocacy
• provides technical and research support to build regional capacity
• provides a gateway to global social protection networks and resources
• maintains a database of relevant institutions and programmes on social protection
• shares and disseminates research findings and experiences on social protection
• assists in the development of policy briefings and advocacy materials
• convenes researchers, policy makers and other relevant actors to promote learning and debate on social protection
• manages a website and e-newsletter on social protection

Programme structure and contacts

The programme has been co-managed and administered by IDS, Sussex and IHD, Delhi.

• Co-Directors: Professor Alakh N Sharma, IHD; Professor Naila Kabeer, SOAS (formerly IDS)
• Former Director: Sarah Cook, UNRISD (formerly IDS)
• Programme Manager: C. Upendranadh (formerly IHD)
• Programme Administrator: Marion Clarke, IDS
• Researcher: Deepta Chopra, IDS 

An Advisory group is composed of senior academics and practitioners in the field

Website: Social Protection in Asia

• IDS key contact: Deepta Chopra
• Project dates: January 2007 - December 2010
• Project status: Closed
• Funder: Ford Foundation; International Development Research Centre (IDRC)

Researchers

• Marion Clarke
• Deepta Chopra

Partner Organisations

• Institute of Human Development (India) (IHD)

Selected Outputs

• Zhu, Y. and Lin, L. (2011) 'The Mobility Patterns of Rural-Urban Migrants and their Social Protection in China: Beyond the Extension of Urban-based Approaches', CSP Research Report 01, Brighton: IDS
• Pei, X. and Tang, Y. (2011) 'The Role of Community Support for the Rural Aged During the Transition in China', CSP Research Report 02, IDS
• Arif, S., Syukri, M., Isdijoso, W., Rosfadhila, M. and Soelaksono, B. (2011) 'Are Conditions Pro-Women? A Case Study of a Conditional Cash Transfer in Indonesia', CSP Research Report 03, Brighton: IDS
• Gazdar, H. and Mallah, H.B. (2011) 'Housing, Marginalisation and Mobility in Pakistan: Residential Security as Social Protection', CSP Research Report 04, Brighton: IDS
• Mahadevia, D. (2011) 'Tenure Security and Urban Social Protection in India', CSP Research Report 05, Brighton: IDS
• Sudarshan, R.M. (2011) 'India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act: Women’s Participation and Impacts in Himachal Pradesh, Kerala and Rajasthan', CSP Research Report 06, IDS: IDS
• Zhang, L., Yi, H., Luo, R., Liu, C., Shi, Y., Rozelle, S., Singer, K.B., Miller, G. and Atlas, S. (2011) 'Caring for One Billion: Assessing the New Social Protection Programmes in Rural China', CSP Research Report 07, Brighton: IDS
• Duong, L.B., Linh, T.G. and Thao, N.T.P. (2011) 'Social Protection for Rural-Urban Migrants in Vietnam: Current situation, Challenges and Opportunities', CSP Research Report 08, Brighton: IDS
• Reddy, D.N., Upendranadh, C., Tankha, R. and Sharma, A.N. (2011) 'Institutions and Innovations in the Implementation Process of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India', CSP Research Report 09, Brighton: IDS
• Hashemi, S.M. and Umaira, W. (2011) 'New Pathways for the Poorest: the Graduation Model from BRAC', CSP Research Report 10, Brighton: IDS
• Salazar, M., Wang, X., Hu, X., Lu, Q., Zhang, Q., Zhou, L. and Zhang, X. (2011) 'The Impact of Natural Disasters on the Social Protection System: Empirical Evidence from the Wenchuan Earthquake', CSP Research Report 11, Brighton: IDS
• Gazdar, H. and Mallah, H.B. (2011) 'Class, Caste and Housing in Rural Punjab – The Untold Story of the Marla Schemes', CSP Research Report 12, Brighton: IDS
• Gazdar, H. (2011) 'Social Protection in Pakistan: in the Midst of a Paradigm Shift?', CSP Research Report 13, Brighton: IDS
• Ainsworth, P. (2011) 'Influencing Policy: Experiences from the Social Protection in Asia Research Programme', CSP Policy Brief 01, Brighton: IDS
• Kabeer, N., Cook, S., Chopra, D. and Ainsworth, P. (2010) 'Social protection in Asia: Research findings and policy lessons' , IDS
• Kabeer, N. and Cook, S. (2010) 'Barriers to the Extension of Social Protection: Evidence from Asia', IDS Bulletin 41.4, Brighton: IDS
• Cook, S., Kabeer, N. and Suwannarat, G. (2003) Social Protection in Asia, New Delhi: Har-Anand Publications

Selected News

• CSP Research Reports from the Social Protection in Asia research programme
• Overcoming the barriers to Social Protection in Asia
• Vulnerability and Social Protection in Asia
• CSP Newsletter Dec Issue 15 Social Protection in Asia