The Role of Social Protection Policies in Enhancing Climate Resilience

The document examines the role of social protection—including contributory insurance and non-contributory transfers—in mitigating the economic shocks of climate change in Africa. It highlights the African Risk Capacity (ARC) and Ethiopia's Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) as key models, while urging the use of international funds like the Loss and Damage Fund and Green Climate Fund to finance these systems.

• Climate change poses a severe threat to Africa's development, with the potential to push over 130 million people into poverty if carbon emissions are not reduced and adaptation plans are not implemented.
• Social protection coverage in Africa is significantly lower than the global average, with less than 17.4% of the population covered compared to just under half of the global population.
• The African Risk Capacity Insurance Company (ARC Ltd) provides sovereign-level index insurance to 30 countries, but its effectiveness in risk pooling is limited because only 39 AU member states have signed the ARC Establishment Agreement.
• Ethiopia's Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) serves as a major example of climate-resilient social protection, supporting 10 million beneficiaries through cash or food transfers in exchange for public works that build water and soil conservation projects.
• Africa faces a massive financing gap for climate-induced loss and damage, with the African Development Bank estimating a need for $290–440 billion between 2020 and 2030 to cover economic damages.
• The document recommends that African nations leverage multilateral climate funds, specifically the Loss and Damage Fund, the Green Climate Fund, and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), to finance social protection pilot programs.

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2024). The Role of Social Protection Policies in Enhancing Climate Resilience. https://saiia.org.za/research/the-role-of-social-protection-policies-in-enhancing-climate-resilience/

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. The Role of Social Protection Policies in Enhancing Climate Resilience. 2024. https://saiia.org.za/research/the-role-of-social-protection-policies-in-enhancing-climate-resilience/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=The Role of Social Protection Policies in Enhancing Climate Resilience |date=3 July 2024 |url=https://saiia.org.za/research/the-role-of-social-protection-policies-in-enhancing-climate-resilience/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2024role, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{The Role of Social Protection Policies in Enhancing Climate Resilience}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2024}, month = jul, url = {https://saiia.org.za/research/the-role-of-social-protection-policies-in-enhancing-climate-resilience/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }