Petra Hoelscher

UNICEF Global Child Poverty StudyCEE/CIS Regional MeetingTashkent, 2-4 April 2008

Assessing the impacts of policies on children

UNICEF

Material

Situation Risk +

Safety

State

Decentralisation

Budgets G

overnance

Community

Protective Environment for C

hildren

Agriculture

Health

Education

Social Protection

Justice

System ReformCapacity Legacy

Child

Wider

Family Peers

EducationFamily Subjective

Well-beingHealth

Migration

Remittances

Outcomes for Children’s Well-being

Family

CivilSociety

Housing

Environment

MTEFFiscal Space

Macro EconomyLegal Framework

External ShocksExternal Shocks

Employment

UNICEF

What are good policies for children?• child mainstreaming – requires visibility of children first• comprehensive, integrated, multi-dimensional strategies• policies that start early, strengthen families & ensure

healthy development of children• policies that reach the most vulnerable groups of the

population but do not lead to further social exclusion or discrimination

user-friendliness, accessibility, simple procedures• policies that meet the needs of children and their families participation of children (consultations etc.)

UNICEF

Checklist: principles of good practice• Is there an integrated, coordinated strategy? • Are there any cross-sectoral approaches?• Do policies follow clear objectives and quantified

targets? • Are monitoring and reporting systems in place?• Is there a balanced approach that includes

• short- and long-term measures, • prevention and alleviation, • universal and targeted approaches?

UNICEF

What are the areas that need an in-depth assessment?• public expenditure analysis/tracking• wider system reform• social protection reform• decentralisation• access vs. quality• situation of young people

need for prioritisation based on country setting

UNICEF

Material

Situation Risk +

Safety

State

Decentralisation

Budgets G

overnance

Community

Protective Environment for C

hildren

Agriculture

Health

Education

Social Protection

Justice

System ReformCapacity Legacy

Child

Wider

Family Peers

EducationFamily Subjective

Well-beingHealth

Migration

Remittances

Outcomes for Children’s Well-being

Family

CivilSociety

Housing

Environment

MTEFFiscal Space

Macro EconomyLegal Framework

External ShocksExternal Shocks

Employment

UNICEF

National and District level. Subordination , reporting, referral and monitoring lines.

Ministry of Justice

Council of Trustees on rights of young

offenders

Public Monitoring Council for

justice issues

Ministry of InteriorDepartment ofprevention and profilaxis of adolescents

Counter ,Trafficking Unit

Ministry of Education

Department for adoptions

Ministry of Health

Department for adoptions

Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Labour & Social Security

Department of Social support

VTEK – Medical Commission

Department for disabled and lonely people

Ministry of Youth, Sport and Tourism

Child coordination council

Transit centres (3)

Street children, children in conflict with the law, victims

of trafficking

Police units and stations:

temporary detention (KPZ)

Children with disabilities and children without parental care (4 -18)

Presidential Apparatus

Medical Psycho -pedagogical commission

Children with disabilities and children without

parental care (0 -3)

Children with disabilities and family allowances

Psycho -neurological dispensaries (Polyclinics)

Dwelling Units and Public

consumptions (Jeks ):

(Pedagogues)

Children in conflictwith the law and

adoptions

Institutes for children with severe disabilities

NGOs: drop in centre for street children, homes

for victim of trafficking,

psychological support

Cabinet of MinistersDeputy PM

for Humanitarian Deputy PM Issues Committee for Refugees and IDPs,

Homes and schools for

children with

disabilities

Rieducation schools for

boys

NGOs: day care centres for children with

disabilities;SOS village

Executive CommitteeExecutive Committee

Public Prosecutor

Detention Centres

Home education

Commission on Minors Commission on

Guardianship and Adoption:

Child Protection Inspectors

Education Authority (psycho -

pedagogical commissions)

SOBES: allowances

for disabilities,

IDPs, refugees, families

VTEK –Medical

Commission for disabilities

Depart -ment of

JEKS

Child IDPs, Refugees, Asylum seekers

Baby homes (incl. Psycho -neurological

problems)

Homes and schools for

children deprived of

parental care

Rehabiliation centre

Sanatoriums for chronic diseases

(including STD)

OMD: emergency unit for children

abandoned at birth

Isolation Centres during investigations

(SIZO)

Judge of preliminary

inquiry

Court

Deputy Minister:national coordinator

Child inspectors

The child protection system – complexity and unclear distribution of responsibility

UNICEF

Assessing the progress of system reform

Policy environment

Line ministries

Systems that work for children

Enabling factors

Barriers

Economicreform

Educationsystem

Social protec-

tion

Child care

Healthsystem

childrenmissing

out

Major determ

inants of reform

Assessment ofprogress of systemreform

Reform process

UNICEF

Child-sensitive social protectionSocial protection describes all public and private initiatives that provide income or consumption transfers to the poor, protect the vulnerable against livelihood risks, and enhance the social status and rights of the marginalised; with the overall objective of reducing the economic and social vulnerability of poor, vulnerable and marginalised groups (Devereux and Sabates-Wheeler, 2004; 9).

A child-sensitive approach to social protection recognises children’s needs, interests and rights, now and in the future, and takes account of the particular vulnerabilities of children, including loss of family, in the design, budgeting, implementation and monitoring of social protection policies and programmes (UNICEF, 2007).

UNICEF

Do social protection measures reach poor children and families?Possible approaches:• Focus on model families to analyse entitlements to

tax benefits, cash transfers and social services• Analysis of child poverty rates before and after

transfers• Microsimulation

UNICEF

Child poverty rates before and after social transfers EU, 2003

05

101520253035404550

Child poverty rate before transfers Child poverty rate after transfers

UNICEF

Impact of total social benefits on child poverty, EU 25, 2004

Source: SILC(2005) - income year 2004 (income year 2005 for IE and the UK); data missing for BG and ROSource: Isabelle Engsted-Maquet, European Commission 2008

AT

BECY

EE

FR

ITLT

LV MT

SI

SK

IE EU-25CZ

DEDK

ELES

FI

HU

LUNL

PLPT

SE

UK

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20

Total social benefit (% of GDP) - excluding pensions

Impa

ct o

f tot

al s

ocia

l ben

efits

(exc

ludi

ng p

ensi

ons)

in

redu

cing

chi

ld p

over

ty, %

UNICEF

Public expenditure on social security and social assistance 2003 (% of GDP)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

Tajikis

tan

Kazak

hstan

Georg

ia

Turkm

enist

an

Azerb

aijan

Albania

Moldova

Russia

Kyrgyz

stan

Uzbek

istan

Belaru

s

Ukraine

Bulgari

a

Source: Social Monitor 2006

UNICEF

Non-health social security benefits in selected countries (as a % of total social security expenditure), 2003

1

85 5 6

9

61

66

61

42

55

44

51

3

16

1014

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Albania Bulgaria Moldova Montenegro Romania Serbia

% o

f tot

al s

ocia

l sec

urity

exp

endi

ture

Child-related benefitsOld age benefitsSurvivor benefits

Source: Social Monitor 2006

UNICEF

Impact of family benefits and economic assistance on child poverty levels (per cent of children under the PPP $ 2.15 poverty line)

28

15

57

18

27

13

56

17

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Albania2002

Bulgaria2001

Moldova2003

Russia 2003

% o

f chi

ldre

livi

ng u

nder

the

PPP

$ 2.

15 p

over

ty li

ne

Child poverty rate(PPP $ 2.15) beforefamily benefitsChild poverty rate(PPP $ 2.15) afterfamily benefits

Source: Social Monitor 2006

UNICEF

Different models of cash transfersUniversal child benefits• ensures minimum standard of living for all children (or

specific age groups)• non stigmatising, simple administration high coverage• expensive to ensure adequate level of payments• more likely to have support in general population than

targeted approaches

Means-tested (income, score cards) or categorical transfers• targeted to poor or disadvantaged groups of the population

(e.g. disabled children)• rationale: cheaper than universal benefits & concern that

families may become welfare dependent• but: often complicated procedures, high barriers in access,

high administrative costs, low coverage of target population

UNICEF

Different models of cash transfersConditional cash transfers• cash transfers linked to families‘ behaviour change –

conditional e.g. on children‘s school attendance or health check ups

• started in Latin America in often localised programmes• mixed evidence of effectiveness• do not work where problems lie in the system rather than

parents‘ behaviour: lack of supply of services, barriers in access (e.g. transport: ‘the bus just stopped’), discrimination

UNICEF

How to maximise impacts of cash transfers on child poverty?

• careful assessment of effectiveness and bottlenecks of current cash transfer system – from a child-focused perspective

• participatory assessment of barriers in access • simple, non-stigmatising procedures• adequate level of benefits• mix of universal and targeted benefits• e.g. South Africa: means-tested child benefit initially for

children under 7, over time extension of age limit, currently up to 14 years, next stage up to 18; value $ 50 PPP; reaches currently 50% of age group proved very effective in improving children’s nutritional status

UNICEF

Conclusions: a vision for a country without child povertyWhat would it take?How long would it take?What would it cost?What will it cost not to end child poverty?

Thinking big & rallying behind a joint objective as a way to overcome the often huge number of different targeted, scattered and unrelated programmes and to move towards a comprehensive and integrated strategy.