Training Course on Social Transfers for West and Central Africa
Version Français, cliquez iciThe Regional Interagency Working Group on Social Protection in consultation with a range of actors in the region has therefore contracted one of the most experienced institutions in this respect, the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance to conduct training to build capacity to manage the development of social transfer programmes in the West and Central Africa region.
Unicef WCARO (West and Central Africa) in cooperation with the Regional Interagency Working Group on Social Protection and in consultation with a range of actors in the region has contracted the Maastricht Graduate School of Governance to conduct training to build capacity to manage the development of social transfer programs in the West and Central Africa region.
Recent shocks caused by changing fuel and food prices and the global economic crisis have underlined the lack of effective social safety nets in West and Central Africa. Whilst traditional informal systems of protection underlie social relations in the region, persistent poverty and recent shocks have all served to weaken them. Formal social security systems are patchy at best, and in many cases restricted to the minority engaged in the formal sector.
There is increasing evidence that social transfers provide both protection from the immediate worst effects of extreme poverty and create a better future for the poorest. Whilst little of this evidence is derived from West and Central Africa, experiences in other parts of Africa, Asia and Latin America underpins a growing consensus that the right to social protection is not only socially important but also a prerequisite to stable economic growth.
Several countries in West and Central Africa have progressed towards the introduction of national social transfer systems. Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, DRC, Ghana, Mali and Senegal have all developed national strategies / plans to this effect; Liberia has introduced a pilot cash transfer scheme; and other countries are also moving forward in different ways. These moves all exist within broader national contexts around social protection, including social insurance, employment programs, social welfare service, schemes around health and education fee waivers and bursaries, school feeding and so on.
Whilst there is growing interest in social protection, there is relatively limited exposure amongst Government officials, civil society actors and indeed agency staff to the rationale and challenges associated with planning and implementing social transfer programs. As a result, national interest in developing social transfer programs can rapidly become mired in issues such as program design, financing, targeting, administration and monitoring and evaluation, as the capacity to manage their development is limited.
