Activation Policies for the Poor in OIC Member States
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These measures, and wider stimulus packages, limited the effects of the immediate crisis but
unemployment has since increased to very high levels in several countries whilst others have
experienced smaller increases. Those countries which implemented labour market activation
reforms in the 1990s and 2000s, have experienced significant reductions in benefit caseloads and
have been better placed to contain increases in unemployment.
The above information shows how, in countries with comprehensive social assistance, the
fundamental concept of activation is almost exclusively linked to the existence and nature of social
assistance payments due to the need to control welfare expenditure. It is therefore important that
the conditionality attached to social assistance payments encourages individuals to seek
employment, rather than to rely on social protection.
In countries with less developed social safety net programmes, the relationship between social
assistance and activation is often very different. In these countries, activation measures are required
to fill the gap caused by a lack of social assistance. Despite the global development of social
protection systems, it is estimated that only 27% of the global population have access to adequate
and comprehensive social protection. Furthermore, the 73% who are inadequately protected live in
middle and low income countries. For example, only 28% of the labour force worldwide is
potentially eligible for unemployment benefits and within this figure regional differences are
considerable: 80% are covered in Europe; 38% in Latin America; 21% in the Middle East; 17% in the
Asia and Pacific region; and 8% in Africa.2
In summary, the current view amongst global economists is that activation strategies have an
important role in both mitigating the worst effects of economic shocks and providing a policy tool
for promoting a more equitable labour market and increased employability in the workforce.
However, these gains are dependent on activation strategies which are well-designed and
responsive to changing labour market conditions.
1.2 Definitions of activation
The fundamental objectives of activation strategies are to:
 Encourage individuals to become more active in their efforts to find work and/or increase their
income
 Help reduce or better manage barriers that diminish employability and capacity to take jobs
There are three activation tools that are the focus of this study:
1 Job search support
2 Training programmes
3 Job creation policies
These tools can either be delivered directly by the PES or contracted out to independent providers,
which may be private or not-for-profit organisations.
The socio-economic function of each type varies according to the economic conditions of each
country, as well as reflecting the social policy priorities. Their use should also reflect the stage of the
economic cycle and labour market conditions. However, activation policies can often lag changes in
the labour market (especially when responding to economic shocks) because of the time needed to
either change the institutional processes of the PES or changing the requirements of external
contractors.
2 World Social Protection Report 2014/15, International Labour Organisation, Geneva, 2014