Contemporary social security systems in Western Asian and African countries

Author: Yang Guangwen, Wen Boyou, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2001-01-01
Features: The "Contemporary Social Security System Research Series" was jointly completed by nearly 100 experts and scholars from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the General Logistics Department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, relevant research institutions, universities, and other organizations over a period of three years. The series consists of 12 original works and 6 translated works. Each volume employs normative and empirical analysis methods to systematically elaborate on various systems of foreign social security theories, analyzes the formation, evolution, historical role, challenges, and reform trends of social security models in countries and regions with representative significance worldwide, and explores the construction and improvement of China's social security system. The six translated works are all classic works in the field of welfare state theory research abroad. The series provides reference value for government policy research departments and practitioners, and can also serve as teaching materials for postgraduate and undergraduate students in relevant research institutions and universities. This book selects 10 representative countries and regions in West Asia and Africa with different types as case study subjects, focusing on researching the historical, cultural, political, and economic backgrounds of the emergence and development of their social security systems, the evolution, institutional characteristics, and structural features of their social security systems, as well as the status of specific social security programs in each country. Based on the case studies, it summarizes and generalizes the general characteristics of social security systems in these countries. In West Asia and Africa, the emergence and development of modern social security systems can be divided into three stages: the colonial period, the period after national independence, and the period after the 1970s, each with distinct characteristics. In the stage, certain forms of modern social security systems began to be introduced from Western countries. In the second stage, the construction of social security systems achieved comprehensive development. In the third stage, as the development strategies of West Asian and African countries adjusted, they correspondingly revised and improved their social security systems. The emergence and development of modern social security systems in West Asia and Africa mainly benefited from internal and external conditions such as traditional cultural environments, the achievements of social security system development in the West, the political guarantees provided by national independence, and the development of productive forces. Currently, many countries in this region have established social security systems dominated by social insurance, supplemented by employer responsibility and social relief. However, the development levels of social security systems vary among countries. The six Gulf countries, after independence, implemented high-welfare policies thanks to their huge oil revenues, providing people with world-class benefits in education, healthcare, housing, employment, and wages. Israel has established a universal welfare-based social security system since the 1970s, becoming one of the countries with the smallest income gaps in the world. However, in most countries, social security systems are still in their infancy, while the social security systems in the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa are nearly non-existent. Overall, the social security systems of most West Asian and African countries are far from perfect, facing issues such as significant gaps in levels, financial difficulties, narrow coverage, incomplete programs, and threats from inflation. The existence of these problems is related to the widespread lack of a strong material foundation for social security systems in West Asia and Africa. Therefore, the future improvement of social security systems in West Asia and Africa fundamentally depends on accelerating economic development.