It is often argued that social protection is not affordable or that government expenditure cuts are inevitable during adjustment periods. But there are alternatives, even in the poorest countries.

The paper "Fiscal Space for Social Protection: Options to Expand Social Investments in 187 Countries", published by the ILO Social Protection Department, offers an array of options that can be explored to expand fiscal space and generate resources for social investments. These include: (i) re-allocating public expenditures; (ii) increasing tax revenues; (iii) expanding social security coverage and contributory revenues; (iv) lobbying for aid and transfers; (v) eliminating illicit financial flows; (vi) using fiscal and foreign exchange reserves; (vii) borrowing or restructuring existing debt and; (viii) adopting a more accommodative macroeconomic framework. To serve as a general advocacy resource, Annex 1 of the paper provides a summary of the latest fiscal space indicators for 187 countries.

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Written by Isabel Ortiz, Director of Social Protection at the ILO. Earlier she was the Director of the Global Social Justice Program at Joseph Stiglitz’s Initiative for Policy Dialogue, Columbia University (2012-13), Associate Director of Policy at UNICEF (2009-12), and senior official at the United Nations DESA (2005-09) and at the Asian Development Bank (1995-2003), among other positions. She has worked in about 40 countries, providing advisory services to governments and organizations. Isabel Ortiz has a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics, and has more than 50 publications translated in several languages.

Published by Global Labour Column and edited by CSID at Wits University.