Extending and institutionalising social protection in Asia : a regional policy-research and network building program; report

Social Protection in Asia (SPA) research contributes to networking activities among Asian institutions working on Social Protection, leading to future collaborations within a strong regional network for research and policy advocacy, and helping develop an institutional presence that can engage in policy dialogue and advocacy with national governments and international institutions. This paper reviews activities, conferences, research and other outputs during the reporting period

National Rural Employment Guarantee as Social Protection

This article is an attempt to highlight issues around the implementation of NREGA with a focus on its institutions, governance and innovations. The main proposition considered is that institutions and governance play an important role in determining the functioning of NREGA, and the trajectory of its success. The attempt is to identify the conditions for success (or failure) in the process, to draw lessons for mid?course corrections to the programme. This includes examining political, administrative and bureaucratic dynamics that may ensure better realisation of the ‘right to work’. Based on a field study in three Indian states, it was found that differential impacts and achievements of the NREGA are related to variations in the commitment of local leadership, levels of institutional preparedness and governance capacities. The experience of these states offers certain insights which may help improve implementation policy of the NREGA

National Rural Employment Guarantee: Issues, concerns and prospects

This working paper critically analyses the performance of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), a very large rights-based social protection programme developed post-2005 for the entirety of India which promises '100 days guaranteed wage'. The analysis is based on primary field studies conducted by agencies across India as well as from secondary data sources. This statistical paper particularly analyses the working of the Act against the percentages of workers' participation (both males and females), and the differences in patterns across India's States between 2004 and 2009. Themes reviewed include: gender equality; women's role in the work force; socio-cultural differences across India's States; work migration; fair wages; and the quality of the work environment. The paper concludes with 'Second Generation Issues' and proposes improvements to deliver a smoother implementation of the programme in the future