The Social Investment Perspective, Conditional Cash Transfer Programmes and the Welfare Mix: Peru and Bolivia

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 479-493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nora Nagels
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Feminist Perspective ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
State Orientation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Welfare Mix

Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programmes have spread across Latin America since the late 1990s. They constitute one of the major changes in social policy in Latin America in the last twenty years (Barrientos, 2009). This innovation has significantly influenced the welfare mix (Esping-Andersen, 1990). Those who examine the welfare mix from a feminist perspective (Orloff, 1996; Martínez, 2008) insist that it is necessary to take into account the gender consequences of changing this mix. Based on a qualitative analysis of CCT programmes in Peru and Bolivia, this article makes two arguments. First, CCT programmes demonstrate that instead of being purely liberal or even neoliberal, the actions of the state in the production of welfare are now grounded from the perspective of social investment. Second, in Peru and Bolivia, the gendered impacts of this new state orientation nonetheless reinforce maternalistic and coercive practices.

scholarly journals From Fome Zero to Bolsa Família: Social Policies and Poverty Alleviation under Lula

2006 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 689-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
ANTHONY HALL
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Poverty Alleviation ◽  
Maternal Nutrition ◽  
School Attendance ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Systematic Evaluation ◽  
The Poor ◽  
Bolsa Familia

Under the administrations of Fernando Henrique Cardoso (1995–2002) and especially President Lula (2003–), conditional cash transfer (CCT) programmes have become adopted as mainstream social policy in Brazil. This follows a marked trend since the 1990s in Latin America towards the setting up of targeted safety nets to alleviate poverty. Lula consolidated and expanded CCTs, firstly under Fome Zero and later Bolsa Família, now the largest such scheme in the world. Its four sub-programmes (educational stipends to boost school attendance, maternal nutrition, food supplements and a domestic gas subsidy) benefit some 30 million of Brazil's poorest people, with a target of 44 million by 2006. Since 2003, spending on Bolsa Família has risen significantly to consume over one-third of the social assistance budget for the poorest sectors and it remained a flagship policy in the run-up to the presidential elections of October 2006. Although coverage of Bolsa Família is impressive, however, systematic evaluation of its social and economic impacts is still lacking. Evidence from other CCT programmes in Latin America suggests that positive results may be achieved in terms of meeting some immediate needs of the poor. However, there have been many implementation problems. These include poor beneficiary targeting, lack of inter-ministerial coordination, inadequate monitoring, clientelism, weak accountability and alleged political bias. Given the heightened profile of cash transfers in Brazil's social policy agenda, key questions need to be asked. These concern, firstly, the extent to which Bolsa Família does indeed contribute to poverty alleviation; and secondly, whether it creates greater dependence of the poor on government hand-outs and political patronage at the expense of long-term social investment for development.

scholarly journals Introduction: Assessing the Effects of Conditional Cash Transfers in Latin American Societies in the Early Twenty-First Century

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-420
Author(s):  
Theodoros Papadopoulos ◽  
Ricardo Velázquez Leyer
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
First Century ◽  
Poverty And Inequality ◽  
Early Twenty ◽  
The Social

Latin America has emerged as a social policy ‘laboratory’ in recent decades and most prominent among the social policy innovations developed in the region are the so-called Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) programmes (Cecchini et al., 2015; Borges Sugiyama, 2011; Martínez Franzoni et al., 2009). They have been widely promoted by international organisations across the world as policy instruments that enhance human capital and the agency of participants while reducing poverty and inequality and promoting co-responsibility and self-help in the long-term (see Sandberg, 2015; Bastagli, 2009; Lomelí, 2008, 2009).

scholarly journals Transferências de Renda Condicionada na América Latina e Bolsa Família no Brasil: uma discussão sobre desenvolvimentos da política social

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 22
Author(s):  
Carolina Alves Vestena
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Theoretical Research ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Bolsa Familia ◽  
America Latina ◽  
Political Spectrum

ResumoNos últimos, transformações têm sido observadas no espectro político latino-americano, o que se reflete também na condução das políticas sociais na região. Exemplo disso, no caso brasileiro, são as recentes mudanças no programa Bolsa Família, uma das políticas mais reconhecidas internacionalmente neste âmbito. Nesse sentido, o presente artigo tem por objetivo apresentar uma análise do perfil do programa em sua elaboração e no interior do contexto latino-americano das políticas de transferência de renda. Assim, permite refletir sobre o paradigma de política social presente no continente e suas influências no modelo brasileiro. A partir de levantamento teórico sobre as políticas sociais na região e de dados empíricos sobre seus impactos, são destacadas as tendências de desenvolvimento observadas e discute-se o papel desempenhado pela política social hegemônica nos últimos anos no Brasil.Palavras-chaves: Bolsa Família, transferência de renda condicionada, América Latina, política social.***Las Transferencias de Renta Condicionadas en América Latina y Bolsa Familia en Brasil: una discusión sobre los desarrollos de la política socialResumenEn los últimos, se han observado cambios en el espectro político de América Latina, lo que se refleja también en la gestión de las políticas sociales en la región. Ejemplo, en Brasil, son los recientes cambios en el programa Bolsa Familia, una de las políticas más reconocidas internacionalmente en este ámbito. En este sentido, este artículo tiene por objetivo presentar un análisis del perfil del programa en su preparación y en el contexto latinoamericano de las políticas de transferencia de renta. Así, que permite reflexionar sobre el paradigma de la política social en el continente y sus influencias en el modelo brasileño. De la investigación teórica sobre las políticas sociales de la región y los datos empíricos sobre su impacto se ponen de relieve las tendencias de desarrollo observadas y se discute el papel de la política social hegemónica en los últimos años en Brasil.Palabras claves: Bolsa Familia, transferencia de renta condicionada, América Latina, política social.***Conditional Cash Transfers in Latin America and Bolsa Família Program in Brazil: a discussion on development of social policiesAbstractIn the last years, changes have been observed in the Latin American political spectrum, which also has reflects on the social policies in the region. The recent changes in the Bolsa Família program in Brazil, one of the most internationally recognized policies in this area, exemplify these transformations. Hereof this article aims to present an analysis of the Bolsa Família profile in its implementation and within the Latin American context of cash transfer policies. From this perspective it is possible to analyze the paradigm of social policy on the continent and its influences on the Brazilian model. From theoretical research on social policies in the region and empirical data on their impact, the development trends and the role of the hegemonic social policy in recent years in Brazil will be highlighted and discussed.Keywords: Bolsa Família, conditional cash transfer, Latin America, social policy. 

Two Decades of Social Investment in Latin America: Outcomes, Shortcomings and Achievements of Conditional Cash Transfers

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 435-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Theodoros Papadopoulos ◽  
Ricardo Velázquez Leyer
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
Policy Design ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Welfare Regimes ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Investment Policies ◽  
Early Twenty

Conditional Cash Transfer programmes (CCTs) have been at the core of the remarkable expansion of social protection in Latin America in the early twenty-first century. Our article reviews the origins of CCTs in the Social Investment (SI) approach to social policy design, explores their characteristics and traces their expansion in Latin America. It further questions whether CCTs designed under the influence of SI can generate long-term substantial improvements in social outcomes. Our analysis suggests that while CCTs have evidently produced a number of positive outputs they are not, on their own, enough to achieve the aim of reducing poverty. CCTs appear to be more effective in poverty alleviation when they are accompanied by – or form part of – a wider package of measures that enhance social and employment rights, integrating workers into the formal economy under better conditions. We conclude that unless the structural deficiencies that shape many of the Latin American welfare regimes are addressed, the potential of social investment policies, like CCTs, to combat poverty will remain limited.

Taking social investment seriously in developed economies

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Hemerijck
Keyword(s):  
Economic Policy ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Social Policy ◽  
Welfare State ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
Policy Instruments ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Developed Economies ◽  
The Social

This chapter looks at the new integration of social with economic policy from the developing economies perspective. It will highlight the key social policy instruments in what were seen as ‘pre-welfare state’ economies, before surveying the ‘social policy spring’ occurring notably in Latin America and in Asia. The chapter will draw out the main learnings for social policy research from the new productivist models associated with Inclusive Growth.

The Politics of Social Investment

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silja Häusermann ◽  
Bruno Palier
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Family Policy ◽  
Political Support ◽  
Second Step ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Middle Classes ◽  
The Social ◽  
Specific Substance

Recent research on the development of social investment has demonstrated reform progress not only in different regions of Europe, but also in Latin America and South-East Asia. However, the specific substance of the social investment agendas varies strongly between these regions. Why have social investment ideas and policies been more developed in some regions and countries than in others? Building on the theoretical framework of this volume, our chapter suggests that the content of regional social investment agendas depends on policy legacies in terms of investment vs consumption-oriented policies and their interaction with structural pressures. In a second step, we argue that the chances of social investment agendas to be implemented depend on the availability of political support coalitions between organizational representatives of the educated middle classes and either business or working-class actors. We illustrate our claims with reference to family policy developments in France, Germany, and Switzerland.

Adoption and Evolution of Cash Transfer Programs in Latin America

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabián A. Borges
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Low Income ◽  
School Attendance ◽  
Debt Crisis ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfer ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Transfer Programs ◽  
Robust Evidence

The last two decades witnessed an unprecedented decline in poverty across the developing world, a decline partly explained by the adoption of social cash transfer programs. Ironically, Latin America, traditionally the world’s most unequal region, has been a global trendsetter in this regard. Beginning in the late 1990s, governments across the region and across the ideological spectrum began adopting conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs, which award poor families regular stipends conditional on their children attending school and/or getting regular medical check-ups, and non-contributory pension (NCP) schemes for low-income and/or uncovered seniors. There is robust evidence that CCT programs achieve their short-term goals of reducing poverty while increasing school attendance and usage of health services. However, they do not improve learning and appear to be failing at their long-term goal of breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty. Likely as a result of low-quality education, long-term CCT beneficiaries do not have significantly better economic prospects than comparable non-beneficiaries. CCTs also have electoral effects—there is robust evidence from across the region that they increase support for incumbent presidential candidates. CCTs were a response to the two big transformations the region underwent during the 1980s: the debt crisis and subsequent lost decade and the transition of most countries to democracy. Increased economic insecurity following the crisis and subsequent neoliberal reforms represented both a threat to the survival of newly elected governments and an opportunity for politicians to win over voters through increased social assistance. Pioneered by Mexico and Brazil in the mid-1990s, CCTs were by far the most effective policies to emerge from that context. They quickly diffused across the region, often with support from international financial institutions. Counterintuitively, adoption appears to be unrelated to the ascendance of left-wing governments in the region during the 2000s. The politics of CCT design are less understood. The myriad ways in which design can be conceptualized and measured, combined with the relative newness of this literature, have limited the accumulation of knowledge. It does appear that left-wing governments adopt more expansive CCTs and de-emphasize conditionality enforcement. Whereas their initial adoption and expansion, which coincided with the 2000s economic boom, proved politically easy, further reductions in poverty will require politically difficult choices, namely, raising taxes and/or redirecting funds away from programs benefiting the better-off. Improving the long-term effectiveness of CCTs will require improving education quality, which in turn will require challenging the region’s powerful teachers’ unions.

From perspectives to policy contingencies: Conditional cash transfers as social investments

2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Moira Nelson ◽  
Johan Sandberg
Keyword(s):  
Latin America ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Conditional Cash Transfers ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Social Investment ◽  
Investment Policies ◽  
The Social

Despite the popularity of social investment, there remain ambiguities regarding how to design an effective social investment approach. We review evaluations of conditional cash transfers (CCTs) in Latin America in order to draw out lessons of how to improve the effectiveness of social investment. CCTs share many of the objectives of the social investment approach and are targeted at poorer groups. Since research shows that such groups are often not adequately supported through social investment policies, analyzing CCTs holds particular promise. Our analysis finds that architects of social investment policies should consider three questions when designing a social investment approach: how much investment is necessary to fulfill social investment functions, what is the causal mechanism through which the goals of social investment are to be achieved, and what array of policies are necessary for such mechanisms to be effective?

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