The Grow Up Free from Poverty Coalition
Why Social Transfers: The Economic case
Why Social Transfers: The Rights case
Choosing the Best Social Transfer
Should Social Transfers Be Targetted or Universal
Cost, Affordability, and Value of Social Transfers
About Social Transfers
Social Transfers Facts and Figures:
- A basic package of modest pensions and child benefits can reduce the poverty head count by 40 per cent in poor countries at a cost of 3-4 per cent of GDP. - ILO
- In South Africa recent research suggests that social transfers, including pensions, facilitate access to employment and create jobs. - HelpAge International 2006
- Social pensions alleviate the impact of HIV and AIDS by providing financial resources for the care of very vulnerable children and orphans. 50-60% of orphans live with grandparents in Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Tanzania, as do 50% in Thailand. - HelpAge International 2004
- In Mauritius, the old age pension has reduced the proportion of households living below the poverty line from 30% to 6%.
- In Tanzania, the International Labour Organisation estimate that a universal child benefit for all school age children (between seven and 14 years) costing three percent of GDP would reduce the percentage of people living below the poverty line by 1/3rd.
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Estimates show that national social transfer programmes in sub Saharan Africa modelled along the
Kalomo pilot in Zambia would cost between 3% and 5% of current aid flows. A Kalomo type programme to all countries in sub Saharan Africa would cost only 3% of additional aid agreed to at Gleneagles. (Source: DFID)
