The IPC-IG and ILO will develop a transition model from non-contributory social assistance to work-related contributory social insurance systems 

By IPC-IG
Photo: Jan Simons / Unsplash

Like in most countries, Jordan’s social protection system combines contributory social insurance programmes with non-contributory social assistance programmes.  Due to a combination of labour market issues and problems in the design of social protection, as well as the lack of coordination/integration between programmes, selection criteria tend to cause different types of disincentives for graduating social assistance programmes or joining the labour market.  In this light, the country’s current social protection system is not geared to facilitate the transition from social assistance to other forms of employment-related social protection. 

To overcome this challenge, the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG) was invited by the International Labour Organization´s Regional Office for Arab States (ILO ROAS) and its Jordan Country Office (ILO Jordan) to develop a transition model from non-contributory social assistance to work-related contributory social insurance systems.

The project is titled “Developing a transition model from non-contributory social assistance to work-related contributory social insurance for Jordan”. It started in November 2021 and it is expected to end in December 2022. Its first initiative is an inception report to define its scope and outline the methodology. Subsequently, the IPC-IG will work on a regional model for alignment and coordination between social assistance and social insurance by developing a conceptual model. It will also provide recommendations across the policy, programming, design and operational levels to enhance coordination and compatibility between contributory and non-contributory programmes, as well as facilitate—when applicable—the transition/alignment between non-contributory social assistance and employment-related social insurance (or other forms of social protection) in the Arab region, based on the ILO’s social security standards and normative frameworks.  

A national assessment of incentive compatibility will also be produced. The idea in this phase is to document the regulatory/design perspective, as well as the perspective of beneficiaries regarding the existing barriers to transitioning from social assistance to employment-related social insurance in Jordan. 

After these studies are completed, the team will then proceed to develop the national model enabling and enhancing the alignment and coordination between social assistance and social insurance. The idea is to apply a specific case of the regional model to Jordan and elaborate specific recommendations regarding its implementation at the regulatory, design, financing, governance/institutional, information/awareness, and administration levels. The national model will also include a proposal for a better transition model emergency better transiiton model for both the National Aid Fund and emergency cash assistance programmes in Jordan, allowing for the continuity of social protection and implementing the notion of graduation as a ‘revolving door’—as opposed to a ‘one-way door’ that pushes people people away from social assistance.  

Rounding up the project will be copyediting and proofreading phases for all outputs, including professional graphic design of the full report and a One Pager summary.