OECD Launches Report on Social Cohesion – What Next?
From Wikiprogress.org
Written by Johannes Jütting of the OECD Development Centre, for the January 2012 edition of the Newsletter on Measuring the Progress of Societies.
In November 2011, the OECD Development Centre launched its “Perspectives on Global Development 2012 – Social Cohesion in a Shifting World”in Paris. The report discusses the opportunities and challenges that the changing geography of growth presents for emerging economies. In the July edition of the Newsletter on Measuring the Progress of Societies (Issue 9), we presented the framework of social cohesion with its three pillars: social inclusion, social capital and social mobility as well as how it impacts on development outcomes. This article now presents the main recommendations as well as some ideas for bringing a social cohesion agenda closer to the country level. The following three main messages emerge from our report.
First, emerging economies should now use their new found prosperity to beef up their investment in social progress. Given that 83 countries have doubled in terms of OECD per capita growth rates and increased their fiscal resources, it is now possible for growth to go beyond re-balancing the economy towards a more inclusive growth, allowing greater emphasis not only on the poor but also the vulnerable middle-class. In an environment of increasing uncertainty and volatility in financial sector investments, the returns for improving human and social capital asset base remain high.
Secondly, governments should react and respond to the rising aspirations of a global middle-class in particular, the increasing demand for more cohesive societies. A cohesive society entails that you are protected against major risks such as illness. It’s a society where there exists a sense of belonging as well as trust in people and institutions and where you can get ahead if you work hard. Our estimates project a quadrupling of the current 1 bn middle-class citizens living in non-OECD economies to almost 4 bn in 2030. These citizens demand not only improved public services, additional and better jobs but also a say in policy making. The shift from absolute to relative considerations – “how do I do compared to my fellow citizens” – calls for building a social contract between the state and its citizens.
Figure 1. An emerging global middle-class as a catalyst for social cohesion
Finally, the report argues that it does not only matter “what you do” in public policy but also “how you do it”. To a large extent, the current development models leave this dimension out. As seen in Thailand and Tunisia, growth and improvements in social outcomes are not sufficient for improving the quality of life, if large parts of the population are left out of policy making at different levels of government.
What next?
In the next months, we are going to present the report in various parts of the world. We would like to use this opportunity to initiate a dialogue on how a social cohesion agenda would look at the country level. For the progress community, three broad research topics could be of interest:
- Concept: What are the links between a social cohesion and the progress agenda and how do both of these impact on classical development outcomes such as poverty reduction and growth?
- Measurement: How can the three dimensions – social inclusion, social capital and social mobility – presented in the report be measured? In particular in the area of social mobility and social capital more data and indicators are needed. As some of the data fall in the category of subjective measures, the question arises on how these compare to more conventional measures.
- Policies: How does a social cohesion agenda fit into the Poverty Reduction Strategy Processes? How can one improve inter-ministerial coordination in different fields ranging from fiscal to employment?
To address the last point, we have started to develop a Social Cohesion Policy Review Instrument (SCPRI). The idea is to assess a country’s policy performance in fostering social cohesion. One possible structure would be to have three main components: a quick snapshot of the general situation using the triangular framework; an assessment of sectorial policies such as employment, social, education and fiscal through a social cohesion lens and finally, an analysis of the policy making process – e.g. interministerial co-ordination and the like.
We would like to invite the progress community to actively take part in this process. Your knowledge and expertise will make a difference.
