Social Protection in West Africa: Many Challenges but Great Initiatives

Abstract

Scarce social security, difficulties in prioritising investments, lack of comprehensive social protection frameworks: this is the scenario in most countries of West Africa. The region in which circumstances are as different as Nigeria and Sierra Leone is most often guided by poverty reduction strategy papers and remains highly dependent on donor resources. Many West African countries seem to lack a clear vision of their development options— it being difficult to plan strategically when a desire for long-term investments competes with the need for immediate alleviation of extreme hunger. There are many different understandings of “social protection”. Social security coverage remains very limited, and ministries of social development and labour are usually more concerned with providing the basic mechanisms for the system to work. Of course, the expansion of social security is also at the heart of the political debate, because most economic activities take place outside the formal sector. But in many countries it is still a challenge to ensure that benefits are delivered to workers who are already covered. The region has only a few cash transfer schemes, such as those in Ghana and Sierra Leone. (...)

Seguridade social limitada, dificuldades