European Commission (2017) Many of the workers in the formal economy can take certain things for granted: a regular income, health insurance, unemployment benefits if they lose their jobs, and a pension when they retire. Such things are a distant dream for workers in the informal economy, who in many countries make up most of the workforce.
developmentpathways.co.uk (20.09.2017) The idea of providing a periodic, unconditional cash transfer to all residents of a country – a universal basic income – has rapidly gained traction in recent years. However, the debate about basic income often seems curiously divorced from the wider debate about the expansion of social security systems, writes Rasmus Schjoedt.
Reuters (25.09.2017) The European Commission wants more social protection and rights for casual workers, such as those in the “gig economy”, and others with non-standard contracts to try to tackle growing social inequality.
allAfrica.com (14.09.2017) With the commodities crisis crippling the economies of countries like South Africa and Nigeria, it's become more important than ever that Africans develop the blueprint for their own start-up nations. While industrialization is an appealing path to growth for countries like Ethiopia, more nations should value the developmental potential sitting in front of them: Africa's large informal sector.
worldbank.org (18.09.2017) The current policy discussion on fiscal redistribution in low- and middle-income countries focuses on the power of fiscal policy to reduce inequality but less on the impact of fiscal policy on the standard of living of the poor. However, a new World Bank book—The Distributional Impact of Taxes and Transfers: Evidence from Eight Developing Countries—reveals that although fiscal systems are always equalizing, they often reduce the actual consumption of goods of the poor.
Le Soleil (18.08.2017) Les 165 députés issus des élections législatives du 30 juillet dernier pourraient examiner en priorité le projet de loi sur la Couverture maladie universelle (Cmu). Une volonté du gouvernement sénégalais de donner un encadrement législatif au droit à une santé pour tous. L’assurance a été donnée, vendredi dernier, par des acteurs des mutuelles de santé réunis dans la capitale du Saloum.
Daily Sabah (13.09.2017) Turkey, along with China, Rwanda, Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea and Laos, recorded the biggest improvements in universal health care between 2000 and 2016, which translated into better vaccine coverage, as well as fewer child deaths and malaria infections, according to a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation-sponsored study published by the medical journal Lancet yesterday.
The Guardian (15.09.2017) Speaking to opponents of universal healthcare in the US today is much like speaking to a moon-landing denier or any other conspiracy theorist – they insist on arguing impossibility in the face of proven reality.
worldbank.org (31.08.2017) Thailand recently announced that it will put into action a national social assistance program for poor families. Such a program can help reduce poverty significantly. It would also move Thailand into the growing ranks of middle-income countries, such as China, Malaysia, Brazil, Turkey and the Philippines, that provide the poor with a ‘safety net’.
Le Monde (05.09.2017) Très contesté, le RSI disparaîtra le 1er janvier 2018. Les indépendants seront adossés au régime général de la Sécurité sociale à l’issue d’une transition de deux ans.
