Singapore is an affluent city state which finances its social security system through a mandatory, publicly managed, defined contribution system based on individual accounts. The main vehicle embodying this is the Central Provident Fund (CPF). There are two other pension systems operating in...

This paper analyzes the determinants of child labor in Africa as inferred from recent empirical studies. The empirical analysis is based upon three country studies undertaken in three different African countries, namely Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, and Zambia. Some support is found for the popular...

The trend toward including individual accounts as part of the mandatory pension system continues unabated. Nine Latin American countries have introduced individual accounts (Chile, Peru, Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay, Bolivia, Mexico, El Salvador and Nicaragua) and several more are preparing to...

The pension reform in Kazakhstan was instituted to remove a deteriorating, and costly pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) system with limited liabilities, a relatively low worker to pensioner ratio, and accumulating pension arrears. Analysis was conducted to assess whether the economy could sustain a radical...

An effective public safety net can be important in a poor transition economy such as Vietnam. Yet we know very little about the performance of existing public transfers as a safety net. Using panel data, the paper investigates whether Vietnam's main social welfare transfers promoted poor people...

This paper reviews the work of Sweden's International Aid for Solidarity and Humanity (SHIA), and umbrella association of Swedish organizations of people with disabilities, and derives lessons, and good practices on disability-related activities. SHIA emphasizes supporting human rights, while...

There is a growing consensus among development practitioners that participatory mechanisms are necessary in securing the success of development projects. Through the lens of social funds this paper looks at the concept of social capital in order to explain why participation is crucial for...

Formal retirement income provision in Australia, can be traced back to occupational schemes first offered by banks, and state governments in the nineteenth century. However, the year 1909 marks the beginning of a national retirement income policy, with the introduction of means-tested age...

Public pension schemes in many countries are predominantly of a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) type, particularly in advanced and transition economies. This paper reviews the types of stresses that PAYG systems can experience and discusses a range of policy options to preserve the financial stability of...

Recent estimates have provided unprecedented numbers of orphans, and vulnerable children, either brought about because of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, or carriers themselves of HIV infections, a relentless growth which has precipitated a multifaceted care burden, that will too, grow for the next...