Social Protection in Afghanistan
Ministry Of Education,
Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs & Disabled
UNICEF
Arusha, Tanzania
15-17 December 2014
Country Context
(War, Poverty & Inequity)
Coming out of 36 years of war, Afghanistan is still a fragile state with 16
of 34 provinces facing security threats & suicide attacks are daily
challenges; despite all this since 2002, we have been trying to piece
together shattered systems
42% live on USD 1/ day; 36.5% of the population has a consumption
pattern of below the poverty line (NRVA 2011-12)
Gini Index increased from 29.7 (in 2008) to 31.6 (in 2012) and share of
the poorest quintile in national consumption declined from 9.1 to
8.5 %
Fifty-five percent of households are in debt, to an average amount of
77 thousand Afs (US $1400)
Country Context
(Food Security & Household Structure)
Around 30.1% of Afghanistan’s population – 7.6 million people – had a
calorie intake that is insufficient to sustain a healthy and active life
Out of the 28.2% of the food-insecure, 2.2 million (8.5%) are very
severely food-insecure and 2.4 million (9.5%) severely food-insecure
Average household size is 7.3 persons with on average 3.5 children
Close to one-third of all Afghans live in households with 10 or more
people (only less than 3% live with three or fewer persons)
Only 2% of households –around 70 thousand –are female-headed
Country Context
(Access to education & Health)
All levels of education & health care are free (private sector has emerged only in
the past 12 yrs)
Twenty-five years olds who have completed any level of formal education make
less than 25% (10% for women)
Net primary attendance ratios for girls and boys are now 48 and 64%, (up from
29 and 43 percent in 2005, and 42 and 60 percent in 2007-08)
Adult literacy rate is 45 percent for men and a low 17 percent for women.
Unequal access to health care between urban and rural populations is a main
concerns e.g., in urban areas 76% of deliveries assisted by skilled health
personnel while in rural areas it is only 33% and for Kuchi women it is 13%
Women served by skilled birth attendants increased to 40% (from 24% in 200708 and only 16 in 2005).
Safety Nets in Afghanistan
Emergency Relief Fund targets victims of natural disasters (national Disaster Relief Office)
Formal safety net programs are modest, both in terms of coverage and spending (with the
main public cash transfer program of benefits for families of Martyr and Disabled
consuming less than 0.5% of GDP
Various food-for-work, cash-for-work or income-generating programmes employed only
over 420,000 people benefitting 320,000 households.
Pension scheme for public sector employees covers only around 100,000 beneficiaries.
Distribution of land plots, cash and in kind transfers to vulnerable population on ad-hoc
basis
Public works and skill development programs are scattered and small in scope
Other ministries and donor-driven safety net programs transfer resources to a small
number of needy households, including during emergencies
Challenges
The country is facing a financial crisis as the public budget is nearing a fiscal
deficit ceiling of a USD 1 billion
Government of Afghanistan is ranked third in the world in CORRUPTION
With a very narrow tax base, the government relies on (68% of the national
budget is from international aid).
Major share of the national budget goes to security, infrastructure, education
and health while a small share for social protection focuses only on
pension and targeting mainly the disabled, widows and martyrs
Many households resort to food intake reduction (42% experienced a shock),
selling production means or taking out children from school for low-paid
jobs (drop out is 75 - 80%)
Target groups such as the chronically poor that live under 1$ a day,
marginalized, vulnerable are yet receive any kind of social protection
Way Forward (1-2)
MoLSAMD as the focal ministry in Social Protection Government has recently
laid out its vision of reforms in the social protection sector in the ANDS
In pensions, the main objective is to ensure fiscal sustainability and pension
program, making it consistent with the broader public sector reform
agenda
In safety nets, the objective is to develop fiscally sound and well-targeted
social protection interventions to cover Displaced and refugees, Womenheaded households, Extremely poor, Households with a disabled person,
Household with Vulnerable children and household with Aged (people
above the age of 65 years)
• Get rid of child labor in Afghanistan & privatize all kindergartens and reorganize of the orphanages operating under the Ministry
• Set up 170 Day Care Centers over a period of five years
• Set up shelters for women in difficult circumstances.
• Provide for welfare of street children.
Way Forward (2-2)
Recently elected President tasked a team to develop a National Social Policy
Policy development process is designed to entail wide-spread dialogues
The policy is expected to guide:
• Initiation of a Social Protection Floor
• Integration to the mainstream of the vulnerable & excluded & the poor
• Expansion of a range of instruments available for social protection
• Improving implementation mechanisms including monitoring & evaluation
mechanism
The UN-family & World Bank are helping the government in this process
Government of Afghanistan would like to thank the UNICEF Tanzania
Office for the invitation to attend and participate in in the International
Conference on Social Protection as well as thank UNICEF Afghanistan
for their continued support.
Special thanks go to the RCO in Kabul Office for supporting the travel
of the Afghan Delegation