Social Protection is Centuries-Old!

In spite of continued growth, millions of Ugandans remain in long-term, extreme poverty. They are also likely to continue being by-passed by the opportunities that economic growth offers, mostly to the ‘active poor’. Recognising this, Government and other development actors are turning their attention to policy initiatives geared towards ‘social protection’. This paper posits that these initiatives might borrow much from elsewhere, in the process neglecting the local cultural context, and failing to build on existing indigenous protection mechanisms that are susceptible to being strengthened. [Working Paper No. 140]social protection poverty African values Ugandan culture traditional protection mechanisms solidarity