Paris, 17-18 June 2010

Experiences and Lessons from Social Protection Programmes across the Developing Word: What Role for the EU?

University Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne’s
Main building
12 place Panthéon
75005-Paris

Drawing from the experiences –both successful and less successful- of social protection programmes implemented across Africa, South-East Asia and Latin America, the Conference aims to stimulate discussion on a number of issues including the role of social protection as a mechanism to ease credit constraints for the poor and the political challenges posed by exporting successful social protection models elsewhere. This debate is expected to be food for thought for EU policymakers and practitioners in their quest to shape a new and united EU front on social protection policies aimed at enhancing the resilience of poor countries against vulnerability and fragility.
The ERD-project is financially supported by the European Commission and seven Member States: France, Germany, Finland, Luxembourg, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.


Programme

Day 1: Thursday 17


08.30-09.30

Opening remarks

Introduction
Giorgia Giovannetti (European University Institute and University of Florence)

Welcome address by the European Commission
Nicolas Gérard (European Commission DG Development and Relations with African, Caribbean and Pacific States)

Welcome address by hosting Institution
François Bourguignon (Paris School of Economics)

Welcome address by the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
Serge Tomasi (French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs)

09.30-12.45

Session 1 – Social Protection in Developing (and Emerging) Countries:
A Comparative Overview

09.30-11.00

Chair: Andrew Mold (OECD)

Sanjeev Gupta (IMF)
Fiscal Developments after the Crisis and What They Mean for Developing Countries
Presentation

Mina Baliamoune-Lutz (University of North Florida)
Social Protection and Africa’s Progress Towards Achieving MDGs [Update Sept 2010]

Discussants: Andrea Goldstein (OECD)
Vinaye Ancharaz (University of Mauritius)

11.00-11.15

 Coffee break

11.15-12.45

Chair: Daniele Checchi (University of Milano and Centro Studi Luca d’Agliano)

François Bourguignon (PSE)
Social Protection in Latin America and the Caribbean: Are there Lessons from the West European Experience

Francesca Bastagli (LSE)
Poverty, Inequality and Public Cash Transfers: Lessons from Latin America

Discussants: George Mavrotas (GDN)
Maxine Molyneux (University of London)

12.45-13.45

 Lunch

13.45-16.00

Session 2 -Risk and Poverty Traps in Developing Countries

Chair: Sylvie Lambert (PSE)

Stefan Dercon* (University of Oxford)
Ingo Outes (University of Oxford)
The Road to Perdition: Testing for Poverty Traps in India

Xavier Giné* (World Bank)
Shawn Cole (Harvard Business School)
Jeremy Tobacman (University of Pennsylvania)
Petia Topalova (IMF)
Robert Townsend (MIT)
James Vickery (Federal Reserve Bank)
Barriers to Household Risk Management: Evidence from India

Alexander Sarris * (FAO)
Panayiotis Karfakis (FAO)
Vulnerability to Covariate and Idiosyncratic Shocks and Safety Net Targeting of Rural Households with an Application to Rural Tanzania

Discussants: Denis Cogneau (PSE)
Johannes Jütting (OECD)
Quentin Wodon (World Bank)

16.00-16.15

 Coffee break

16.15-17.45

Session 3 Financial Development, Microfinance and Social Protection

Chair: Gyimah Brempong Kwabena (University of South Florida)

Fabrizio Coricelli* (PSE)
Nauro Campos (Brunel)
How to Maximize the Development Impact of Social Protection Policies in Africa?
The Role of Financial Development [Update Sept 2010]

Victor Murinde (University of Birmingham)
Thankom Arun (University of Central Lancashire)
Microfinance Regulation and Social Protection [Update Sept 2010]

Discussants: Tessa Bold (Institute for International Studies, Stockholm)
George Naufal (American University of Sharjah)

Day 2: Friday 18 June

08.45-12.45

Session 4 – The Political Economy of Social Protection

08.45-10.15

Chair: Krzysztof Hagemejer (ILO)
Bob Deacon (University of Sheffield)
Global Social Floor or Global Social Investment: From the ‘Global Politics of Poverty Alleviation’ to ‘the Global Politics of Welfare State (Re)building’
Presentation

Seth Kaplan (Alpha consulting)
Why State Cohesion and Ideology Matter to the Poor—and to International Aid Programs [Update Sept 2010]

Presentation

Discussants: Henri-Bernard Solignac-Lecomte (OECD)
William Amponsah (Georgia Southern University)

10.15-10.30

 Coffee break

10.30-12.45

Chair: Rachel Sabates-Wheeler (IDS)

David Hulme* (University of Manchester)
Miguel Niño-Zarazúa (University of Manchester)
Armando Barrientos (University of Manchester)
Samuel Hickey (University of Manchester)
Social Protection in Sub-Saharan Africa: Getting the Politics Right?

Paul Collier (Oxford University)
Social Protection in Resource-Rich Low-Income Countries [Update Sept 2010]

Samuel Hickey (University of Manchester)
The Politics of Social Protection in Africa:
What Do We Get from a ‘Social Contract’ Approach? [Update Sept 2010]

Discussants: Nicholas Freeland (RHVP)
Thierry Verdier (PSE)
Jan Orbie (Gent University)

12.45 -13.45

 Lunch

13.45-15.15

Roundtable: Views on Social Protection: Perspectives for Africa

Chair: Giorgia Giovannetti (EUI and University of Florence)

Participants:
Arup Banerji (World Bank)
Krzysztof Hagemejer (ILO)
Sanjeev Gupta (IMF)
Abdul B. Kamara (African Development Bank)
George Mavrotas (GDN)
Thandika Mkandawire (LSE)

15.15-15.30

Coffee Break

15.30-17.00

Roundtable: Donors and Social Protection: What Role for the EU?

Chair: Pascal Vennesson (EUI)

Participants:
Jean-Michel Debrat (AFD)
Patrick Guillaumont (CERDI, University of Auvergne)
Mia Horn af Rantzien (Sweden Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Markus Loewe (DIE)
Françoise Moreau (European Commission)
William Nicol (OECD)
Paul Wafer (DFID)