Kenya ranked top over its safety plan for poor citizens

The World Bank has named Kenya and Senegal as among the most active African countries in offering social safety net to their poorest citizens.

Over 65 per cent of the world’s poorest are not covered by any type of social safety net, says the bank’s study which urges governments to put in place support systems to cut inequality and lift people from extreme poverty.

The survey says over 1.9 billion people in 136 low- and middle-income countries usually benefit from social safety net programmes.
The State of Social Safety Nets 2015 report adds that in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, where most of the global poor live, protection programmes usually cover between one-tenth and one-fifth of the poorest 20 per cent, respectively.

The coverage of the poor in towns is lower than in rural areas.

Social safety net programmes include cash and in-kind transfers targeted to the poor and vulnerable households for food, health and education.
Kenya’s National Safety Net Programme includes the hunger safety net plan, urban food subsidy, and the disabled’s cash transfers.

Other groups covered are orphans and vulnerable children and older persons. The funds usually cushion families from the impact of economic shocks, natural disasters and other crises.

In the 2015/2016 budget, Kenya allocated Sh9 billion for the orphans and vulnerable children; Sh7.4 billion for the elderly; Sh1.2 billion for people with extreme disability; Sh300 million for other disabled persons; Sh300 million for street families and Sh1.3 billion to fight hunger.

MORE TO BE DONE

The World Bank Group’s senior director for social protection and labour Arup Banerji said there is still more to be done to bring into the safety bracket the poorest majority.

“There is strong body of evidence that these programmes ensure poor families can invest in the health and education of their children, improve their productivity, and cope with shocks,” Mr Banerji said.

“Going forward, more can be done to close the coverage gap and reach the world’s poorest by improving the effectiveness of these programmes underpinned by enhanced targeting, improved policy coherence, better administrative integration, and application of technologies.” 

Cash transfers constitute the highest share of spending in all regions except in sub-Saharan Africa, where food and other in-kind transfers dominate. Safety net programmes on average help reduce poverty headcount rate by 8 per cent and narrow the poverty gap by 15 per cent on average.

Kenya’s hunger safety net plan is implemented by the National Drought Management Authority under the Ministry of Devolution. At the moment, the programme supports the poorest and vulnerable households in Turkana, Mandera, Wajir and Marsabit counties.

The programme’s goal is to reduce extreme hunger and vulnerability by delivering regular and unconditional cash transfers of Sh5,100 every two months (starting from July 5, 2015) to targeted households.

The World Bank report is the second in a series of studies that monitor the growth and coverage of social safety nets in the developing world. It also highlights promising innovation and reviews important policy and practical developments in this area.

The survey could also serve as a tool to monitor progress in achieving the United Nation’s goal of implementing nationally appropriate social protection systems.