1. Universal Social Protection Floor (USPF): What’s in it for us?
Policy Discussion
Universal Social Protection Floor (USPF): What’s in it for us?
26 April 2017
D.F. Hernandez Room, SEAMEO-INNOTECH,
Commonwealth Avenue, Quezon City

2. Context

3. Situation Social exclusion stands in the way of children’s well-being
All children, like adults, have a right to an acceptable standard of living, access to social services and to a life free from bias and stigma.
Discrimination creates and compounds inequity
Poverty and discrimination are obstacles to better child outcomes.
Poor and marginalized children are more malnourished, less healthy, have fewer opportunities to learn and are at greater risk of exploitation.
Attempts to address poverty and discrimination with the provision of social services are necessary but rarely sufficient.
Children are rarely prioritized when decisions are made about the use of public funds – and investment in the poorest children is usually the lowest of all
Governance practices – both local and national – have direct impact on child well-being, but this is rarely taken into account
Fighting discrimination requires concerted to translate commitments into action.

4. Problem Child poverty remains alarmingly high
Children experience poverty as a series of overlapping deprivations – whether due to low income, discrimination or lack of government investment – which result in insufficient nutrition, health care, education or poor living conditions
Data to understand the magnitude and extent of social exclusion on children remains scarce
Well-designed social protection systems have a proven positive impact on child poverty and well-being, but coverage is still low
Children are rarely prioritized when decisions are made about the use of public funds – and investment in the poorest children is usually the lowest of all
Fighting discrimination requires concerted efforts to translate commitments into action
Attention to resilience and social inclusion in emergencies is rare, yet clearly needed both to prevent recurrences and to protect vulnerable populations in humanitarian situations
Governance practices – both local and national – have direct impact on child well-being, but this is rarely taken into account

5. Proposed Solutions
Promoting routine government monitoring of child poverty to inform policy and programme response
Child-sensitive social protection
Making public resources work better for children
Promoting quality child care
Promoting the meaningful participation of adolescents from community to national level to influence development agendas that affect them
Strengthening national legal frameworks and justice systems to better respond to child rights and protect minorities from discrimination
Addressing social-cultural practices and norms that impede social inclusion and perpetuate discrimination
Supporting governance and accountability measures
Increasing attention paid to social inclusion and resilience measures in humanitarian situations and to address the impacts of climate change on children

6. Social Protection
Evidence clearly demonstrates that social protection has significant and positive impacts for children and their families.
While cash transfers are an important part of social protection, other social protection programmes and services are also vital for children.
Effective child sensitive social protection often means supporting families and communities as well as children directly.
UNICEF supports the progressive expansion of coverage through nationally-led, inclusive social protection systems.

7. Social Protection and Child Rights
Social protection is a child’s right, and an investment in a nation’s future.
Evidence shows that investments that raise cognitive capital (the capacity of people to think and learn and work together) will help sustain and grow economies. Cognitive ability is markedly affected by childhood circumstances – right from the point of conception. Children who experience good nutrition, stimulation and secure environments are most likely to reach their full cognitive potential.
Addressing childhood and parental vulnerability and disadvantage contributes to economic growth, and the best way to do this is for greater investment in social protection programmes
Child-sensitive social protection does not mean child-exclusive programmes. Tackling the economic and social vulnerabilities children share with their households and communities is as crucial for child rights as tackling those that are child-specific.
Social protection helps societies increase equity and social justice and enables children and adults to realize their full potential.
The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) establishes children’s right to social security and to an adequate standard of living. Social protection measures also play a critical role in supporting the fulfillment of children’s other rights, such as the right to survival and development or the right to education.
Children face multiple and compounding vulnerabilities which shape both their current poverty, and their likelihood of becoming poor(er) in the future. Child sensitive social protection addresses a number of these underlying vulnerabilities to poverty and deprivation by removing economic and social barriers that prevent access to services and an adequate standard of living. In this way, it also complements investments across sectors, resulting in more equitable outcomes.

8. Integrated Social Protection Systems
UNICEF supports an integrated social protection systems approach that can provide a comprehensive, coordinated package of interventions to address different dimensions of child poverty and deprivation and to reduce vulnerability across the life-cycle. Such systems ensure that individual measures complement one another to progressively achieve universal coverage and deliver predictable and cumulative benefits to individuals and households.
The pathway towards integrated systems is a gradual and contextual process, which will take different forms. Relevant parameters are:
Structures, mechanisms and human resources that are required to deliver coherent and coordinated social protection interventions and policies
Linkages between social protection and multi-sector outcomes (i.e.: education, health, nutrition, early childhood development, water and sanitation, child protection and HIV/AIDS)

9. UNICEF’s definition of social protection
UNICEF defines social protection as: The set of public and private policies and programmes aimed at preventing, reducing and eliminating economic and social vulnerabilities to poverty and deprivation.
UNICEF’s work on social protection concentrates on four components:
Social Transfers, such as cash transfers, public works, child and disability grants;
Programmes to ensure access to services, such as removal of user fees and health insurance;
Social support and care services, including family support counseling and referrals;
Legislation and Policy Reform to ensure equity and nondiscrimination in access to services and economic opportunities.
Key Principles for UNICEF’s work on Social Protection
Progressive realization of universal coverage
National systems and leadership
Inclusive social protection
Inclusive social protection
Social dimensions of vulnerability such as gender, ethnicity, HIV status, geographic location, and disability status fundamentally shape exposure to risk and resilience, and access to essential social services and secure livelihoods. Inclusive social protection is responsive and sensitive to the needs of all children, by:
Using specific social protection instruments that explicitly promote social inclusion and equity; and
Ensuring that programme design and implementation is sensitive to the added vulnerabilities that stem from social exclusion.

10. UNICEF Philippines Social Protection Interventions
Design of a social protection intervention for Children with Disabilities. Three phased approach:
Phase 1: Situational Analysis of Children with Disabilities
Phase 2: Costing study (raising children with disabilities)
Phase 3: Design of a program for children with disability
Design of PhilHealth Benefit Package for Children with Disabilities
A comprehensive health insurance package for children with disabilities in PhilHealth. This package covers services for 5 million disabled children nationwide who have long-term physical mental, intellectual or sensory impairments.
UNICEF established integrated service delivery networks consisting of four subnational hubs and developed communication plans to address stigma. Components include primary prevention of disabilities in children; improved capacity of frontline health; improved integrated service delivery networks for children with disabilities centered around regional rehabilitation hubs that provide comprehensive services, including assistive devices; enhanced financial access of children with disabilities to rehabilitative services and assistive devices; and improved attitudes and practices towards children with disabilities among communities and service providers.

11. UNICEF’s Comparative Advantage