The twentieth century saw the economic rise of Asia through the significant economic rise of the “Asian Tiger” countries (Kojima 2000; UNCTAD 1996). But the twenty-first century has been dubbed the African century (Wikipedia 2016). Tech Crunch, renowned technology media company, recently published an article entitled “The Future Is African” (Nash 2015), which aptly described how Africa is unleashing innovation by combining mobile and Web technology to lead the world in the twenty-first century.

ILO (2015) Due to the global demographic ageing, all countries are challenged by growing long-term care (LTC) needs for older persons. However, these needs are largely ignored and range very low on the policy agendas of most countries.
The neglect of LTC needs is also reflected in the widespread lack of national, regional and global data on coverage and access to related benefits and services. As a result, the impacts of LTC deficits experienced by older persons cannot be evaluated and remain hidden. Further, in the absence of such information, policy makers cannot identify priority areas for political interventions and prepare for the growing LTC demand of older persons in ageing societies.
Against this background, this paper has developed for the first time global estimates on LTC protection of persons aged 65 and over. This study presents these estimates. It is following up on discussions held during the International Labour Conference in 2014 and the ILO Governing Body focusing on demographic change and the care economy.

TDG (12.02.2018) Les Romands en revanche sont opposés à travailler plus longtemps. Ils estiment que les rentes AVS ne sont pas menacées.

Le Figaro (13.02.2018) Pour l'économiste Rémi Bourgeot, les mesures annoncées par l'exécutif ce lundi s'inscrivent dans la continuité de l'accord européen d'octobre sur le travail détaché.

The News Tribune (12.02.2018) They don’t come to us because of their best-laid plans; they show up when there is a crisis.An example of a common family experience is when Mom might have a stroke or other diagnosis that impacts her independence. Maybe she is seen in the hospital and then referred to a skilled nursing facility for rehabilitation.

BBC News (12.02.2018) Around 285,000 couples are eligible every year for shared parental leave, but take-up "could be as low as 2%", the Department for Business said. Around half of the general public are still unaware the option exists, nearly three years after it was introduced, the government said. It now plans to spend £1.5m to better inform parents about the policy.Experts say that as well as a lack of understanding of what is on offer, cultural barriers and financial penalties are deterring some parents from sharing parental leave Around 285,000 couples are eligible every year for shared parental leave, but take-up "could be as low as 2%", the Department for Business said.Around half of the general public are still unaware the option exists, nearly three years after it was introduced, the government said.

Lexology (05.02.2018) The Statutory Accident Insurance (Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung) has recently argued that operators of internet platforms such as Uber, Airbnb and MyHammer should be included in the accident insurance system like any other employer. Accident insurance is one branch of the social security system in Germany, the contributions to which are traditionally shared between employer and employee. It covers costs for the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases (insured events) and the compensation of damage after the occurrence of an insured event. Costs are ultimately borne entirely by the employers in a pay-as-you-go system, depending also on the risk level of the work performed by their employees. However, independent contractors are not covered by this system.

gemalto.com (21.06.2017) In less than a year after the Estonian eHealth Foundation announced that it planned to use blockchain technology to secure the public health records of Estonia's 1.3 million citizens, a ground-breaking system was up and running. The system facilitates improved access to vital information for health professionals, while simultaneously guaranteeing patient confidentiality and the integrity of their files. It's a holy grail of healthcare. Some of the brightest and best minds on the globe have been applying themselves to the issue of making blockchain both practically useful and commercially viable. So how did the Estonian state and a local firm partner up to achieve what others are still only aspiring to?

We live in a digital world, yet the majority of medical records such as blood test reports or x-rays are stored on paper. Moreover, most hospitals don’t share access to medical records, which is time consuming for doctors when prescribing treatments and inconvenient for patients. Having medical records on the blockchain can have a positive effect on disease management, disease prevention, and minimize unnecessary healthcare expenses. Digital health records will also open up the possibility for cross-border sharing of medical data if a patient is on holidays and requires treatment abroad. Estonia and Dubai are the frontrunners when it comes to management of medical records on the blockchain.

Estonia’s healthcare system has been revolutionized by innovative e-solutions. Patients and doctors, not to mention hospitals and the government benefit from the convenient access and savings that e-services have delivered. Each person in Estonia that has visited a doctor has an online e-Health record that can be tracked. In order to keep health information completely secure and at the same time accessible to authorised individuals, the electronic ID-card system uses KSI Blockchain technology to ensure data integrity and mitigate internal threats to the data.

El País (09.02.2018) Un estudio propone soluciones al dilema que enfrentan muchas madres que trabajan: cuidar a los hijos o hacer carrera

uk.businessinsider.com (15.01.2018) Advocates for universal basic income expect the idea to become politically mainstream in 2018. Politicians have already started proposing trials for their cities and states. Existing welfare programs could offer a foundation for bringing basic income to the masses, experts agree.

.lessentiel (08.02.2018) Die Ratingagentur Moody's stellt Luxemburgs Wirtschaft regelmäßig ein sehr gutes Zeugnis aus. Auf die Gesundheitsausgaben des Landes hingegen scheinen die Analysten hingegen einen kritischeren Blick zu werfen. Nach Berechnungen der Agentur sind die Gesundheitsausgaben von Luxemburg doppelt so hoch wie im europäischen Durchschnitt: 6000 Dollar gegenüber 3000 Dollar.

Paperjam News (08.02.2018) Le ministre de la Sécurité sociale, Romain Schneider, et le ministre du Travail, de l’Emploi et de l’Économie sociale et solidaire, Nicolas Schmit, ont annoncé le 6 février 2018 le lancement d’une nouvelle plateforme informatique, la «Luxembourg Microdata Platform on Labour and Social Protection». 

netralnews (07.02.2018) The digital revolution or the fourth industrial revolution (4.0) could create economic storage that would potentially cause Indonesia to lose 50 million job opportunities. Minister of National Development Planning Bambang PS Brodjonegoro said all parties should be ready to face it including the manager of the national social security provider.

The World Bank’s ASPIRE online tool is the most up-to-date compilation of global social protection and labor (SPL) estimates, including data from 120 countries—mostly in the developing world. ASPIRE provides open and accessible household-level data on populations’ social and economic status; assessments of SPL programs, including weaknesses such as low coverage and poor targeting; SPL program impacts on poverty and inequality; and ways to improve household data collection for SPL programs.

The Jakarta Post (06.02.2018) Currently, the global workforce and business landscape have to deal with rapid changes brought by the latest innovations in communication technology, be they smartphones or digital gadgets, which have disrupted the way businesses run their day-to-day operations. The technological innovations have brought what experts term the fourth industrial revolution, which is characterized by increased automation with the help of the internet of things.

irishtimes (05.02.2018) Pension reforms announced with fanfare by Minister for Social Protection Regina Doherty will benefit far fewer women than campaigners had originally expected. The changes, announced last month, were designed to take account of the fact that many women had big gaps in their social-insurance contribution records because of time they had taken out of the workforce to raise a family or take care of older relatives. A lot of these women had seen their right to a pension disappear or the payment reduce under a tightening of the rules in September 2012.

Le Temps (06.02.2018) Le secteur de la métallurgie a annoncé un accord, dans la nuit de lundi à mardi, sur la semaine de 28 heures. Ce temps de travail ne s’accompagnera cependant pas d’une compensation salariale et ne sera valable que pour une période limitée

cnbc.com (30.01.2018) Amazon views technology as a key part of its strategy to drive down costs. Telemedicine companies could be the big winners.

Les Echos (05.02.2018) Attention donnée sensible : un peu plus de 516.000 travailleurs ont été détachés en France l'année dernière, hors transport routier, selon un bilan intermédiaire du plan national de lutte contre le travail illégal dévoilé par « Le Monde ». Outre son côté symbolique, c'est surtout l'évolution de ce chiffre qui frappe puisqu'il marque une progression de 46 % par rapport au millésime 2016, lui-même supérieur de 25 % sur l'année précédente.
 

European Western Balkans (01.02.2018) The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) gathered experts to discuss challenges and priorities for the economic and social cohesion of the Western Balkans. The event “Economic and social cohesion and European integration of the Western Balkans – challenges and priorities” was held in Brussels on 30 January.

Jordan Times (07.01.2018) Prime Minister Hani Mulki on Sunday formed a committee to handle all affairs related to the social security network, the term referring to the funds allocated to ease the impact of lifting subsidies in the 2018 budget.

Cooperativa. (01.02.2018) Tres de cada 10 trabajadores forman parte de la Ocupación Informal del país, según reveló el inorme elaborado en el trimestre octubre-diciemrbe por el Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas (INE).

The New York Times (01.02.2018) India announced on Thursday a sweeping plan to give half a billion poor Indians free access to health care, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks to address rising demands for greater economic and social protections before national elections next year.