The Ministry of Social Development (MoSD) and the Ministry of Labour (MoL), in partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO), today launched the Social Protection Community of Practice (CoP) for the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). The initiative is funded by the European Union through the three-year "Strengthening capacities towards a coherent national social protection system across the humanitarian, development and peace nexus" project, jointly implemented by the ILO and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
The Community of Practice brings together representatives from government institutions, employers' and workers' organizations, development partners, academia, civil society, and social protection practitioners in a dedicated platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and collaborative learning on social protection.
The launch comes at a critical time as the OPT continues to face protracted economic, social, and humanitarian challenges. Strengthening social protection systems is essential to ensuring that vulnerable individuals and families have access to adequate, inclusive, and responsive support throughout the life cycle and in times of crisis.
The Social Protection Community of Practice aims to strengthen coordination among stakeholders, promote evidence-based policymaking, facilitate the exchange of national and international experiences, and support efforts to strengthen social protection systems across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza. Through regular engagement, technical discussions, and peer learning, the platform will help build a shared vision for more effective and sustainable social protection interventions.
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The Community of Practice builds on the outcomes and recommendations of the TRANSFORM foundational training on social protection, held in Jordan, in September, which introduced 28 participants to the tools and concepts of social protection system development.
Speaking at the launch, representatives of the partner institutions emphasized the importance of collective action and knowledge exchange in advancing social protection reforms and strengthening institutional capacities.
H.E. Dr. Samah Hamad, Minister of Social Development, stressed the need to address the fragmentation of social protection programmes: "What is needed is for us to see these programmes as parts of a single system, and to strengthen integration among them, reduce duplication and cover the gaps." She added: "We will not measure the success of the Community of Practice by the number of meetings it holds, but by what it adds to the way we work together."
H.E. Dr. Enas Attari, Minister of Labour, said the Community of Practice is an inclusive national space that brings together the expertise and responsibilities of institutions and partners to help citizens access decent work and social protection. She set out four priorities: linking social protection with decent work opportunities; improving access for groups that benefit least from services, particularly women, youth, persons with disabilities and workers in the informal economy; strengthening institutional coordination; and ensuring the effective participation of workers' and employers' representatives, the private sector, civil society and universities.
"The need now is to build new programmes and expand existing ones, to serve Palestinian society on the basis of providing protection for all, with a focus on fragile and most vulnerable groups, and within a framework based on rights, equality and justice," said Mr. Dan Cork, ILO Representative in Jerusalem. "I invite you all to engage in the Social Protection Community of Practice and to work together towards achieving this goal, and we and our partners are fully ready to help and cooperate in this."
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The initiative reflects the shared commitment of national and international partners to advancing social justice, reducing poverty and vulnerability, and expanding access to social protection for all Palestinians. By connecting expertise, experience and evidence, the Community of Practice will serve as an important mechanism for supporting ongoing policy dialogue and strengthening social protection outcomes across the OPT.
