Which role do social security systems play in national crisis management?
The ILO report to the G20 summit in Pittsburgh found that the employment effects of the so-called ‘automatic stabilizers’, including social assistance and social security benefits, were just as important as the effect of the stimulus packages. Governments that already had social protection schemes in place were much better able to cope with the crisis. The impact of the crisis at household level was softened and the drop in aggregate demand alleviated. Did the crisis change the perception regarding the need of social security systems? Given the stabilizing role that social security systems have played, they have become universally accepted instruments. Governments were able to use existing social transfer systems for the delivery of stimulus packages to respond to the heightened need for protection. The crisis acted as an accelerator in the social security debate. Social security systems not only respond to social needs, they are an economic necessity. We need a new understanding of th
