Is the OECD model applicable to less developed countries?
OECD countries base their principal models of social security on the acceptance that social security is a means to modernization and sustainable growth, as well as a key factor in reducing domestic poverty. Of course, mature OECD models cannot simply be transferred en bloc, but some of the developmental patterns may be emulated, starting from modest levels of protection in the early phases of development and building successively higher levels of protection as economies mature. If such patterns were to be adopted by low-income countries, the performance of the global economy, as well as the individual fiscal space and political priorities of each country, would still determine the pace of social security development for the majority of the population. In many developing countries, regressive or even elitist programmes still prevail, and social security systems are desperately under-resourced and diverse. How do we overcome some of the challenges to establishing social security? Global
