The State and the Imperative for Social Policy Reform in Africa

This concise and interdisciplinary open access volume explores the imperative of social policy reform in Sub-Saharan Africa and the potential nature of such a reform. Its chapters study social policy changes that have been made before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and those that need to be made towards better protecting individuals, families, and communities against exposure to insecurity, poverty, and other vulnerabilities throughout their lifecycle. As argued, for this to happen, the state needs to play a pivotal role in building harmonised and coordinated social policy systems. The chapters also stress the need for a holistic social policy reform that spans key areas including health, education, disability, gender, and migration policies. Besides this, the volume considers the role of automatic stabilisers and novel issues such as the impact of social media. Finally, the volume draws our attention to the respective roles of state actors, national non-state actors, and transnational actors.

Includes chapters written by Africans working within the continent as practitioners and/or in academia Presents a compelling diversity of social policy topics Provides the first general assessment of social policy in Sub-Saharan Africa post-COVID This book is open access, which means that you have free and unlimited access

Autorentext

Daniel Béland is Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and James McGill Professor in the Department of Political Science at McGill University (Montreal, Canada). A student of comparative fiscal and social policy, he has published more than 20 books and 220 articles in peer-reviewed journals.

Rosina K. Foli is a Senior lecturer at the Political Science Department of the University of Ghana. Her research interests include social policy, governance and poverty reduction in sub-Saharan Africa and transnational policy processes. Recent publications include The Making of Anti-Poverty Policies in Ghana: Transnational Actors, Processes and Mechanisms (Palgrave).

Privilege (Priva) Haang'andu is a Senior Policy Advisor at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, an agency of the Government of Canada. He also teaches at the Canada School of Public Service. His main research interest is the role of transnational policy actors in driving policy change in African institutions.

Inhalt

1. Introduction: Reconsidering Social Policy Reform in Africa.- 2. The Moral Politics of Need in Southern Africa.- 3. Automatic Stabilizers and Social Protection.- 4. The Need for Transformative and Equitable Health Policy.- 5. Persons with Disabilities and Social Policy.- 6. Navigating the Terrain of Education in Post-COVID-19 Era.- 7. The Role of Transnational Actors in African Social Policy.- 8. Gender and Social Policy in Africa.- 9. The Fate of Sub-Saharan Migrants and Refugees.- 10. The Politics of Socio-Economic Rights and Constitutionalism.- 11. Young People and Social Media for Social Change.- 12. Conclusion: The future of social policy reform in Sub-Saharan Africa.