This report analyzes comprehensive 2009 data on government social protection programs in 35 countries in Asia and the Pacific. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) used its Social Protection Index to help assess the nature and the effectiveness of these programs, as well as to facilitate cross-country comparisons.

This project based its activities on the definition of social protection in ADB’s 2001 Social Protection Strategy as a “set of policies and programs designed to reduce poverty and vulnerability by promoting efficient labor markets, diminishing people’s exposure to risks, and enhancing their capacity to protect themselves against hazards and interruption/loss of income.” Strengthening social protection represents a priority contribution to achieving inclusive growth, one of the three main pillars of ADB’s Strategy 2020.

This report divides social protection into three major categories: social insurance, social assistance, and labor market programs.