Social protection can provide people with security in the face of structural transformations, crises, and ordinary life-cycle risks. This project examines the impact of social protection on reducing and preventing poverty, including intergenerational transmissions, and on supporting key life and work transitions.

The project investigates the effects of child benefits in reducing drivers of poverty and inequality and in better equipping adolescents to make the transition from education to work, higher education or training. It also examines the impact of complementary investments in cash benefits and care services and whether combined investments are more effective than investments in one or the other. This was done through a global literature review, that considered the influence of global trends such as climate crisis, demographic change, and technological change.  Luxembourg Income Study data on poverty and child poverty rates, the Gini index, and the social security coverage of workers, were analysed for countries with reliable datasets for the period 2012-2022.

This research was done to inform their World Social Protection Report 2024-2026.

Key findings from this project informed the Social Protection Spotlight brief: The Promise of Universal Child Benefits, co-authored by the Learning for Well-being Institute, UNICEF, and ILO.