On 8 October, ESCWA and the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MoLSA) of Somalia launched the "Social Protection Landscape and Perspectives: Comprehensive National Review of the System and Reforms of Somalia" report during an interregional workshop in Addis Ababa.
Somalia has successfully established key foundations for a national social protection system despite exceptionally challenging circumstances. The next stage of reform will require consolidating these gains into a more integrated, sustainable and nationally owned system that reduces poverty, strengthens resilience, supports human capital development, and contributes to social cohesion and State-building.
The report was developed jointly by ESCWA and MoLSA, with technical support from Samuel Hall, a regional think tank specializing in evidence-based policy research. It reviews the social protection system in Somalia and its main programmes, highlights key achievements and reform needs, and identifies policy options to strengthen coverage, effectiveness, sustainability and national ownership.
The report was launched during a panel discussion titled "From Diagnostics to Policy Change", which brought together government representatives and development partners to examine how diagnostic evidence can be turned into policy and institutional reform. The discussion focused on priorities for building an integrated, sustainably financed, inclusive and shock-responsive social protection system aligned with Somalia's national development objectives.
Participants underscored the importance of integrating diagnostic evidence into broader institutional reforms, legal mandates and coordination mechanism to effectively translate evidence into policy change.
Through this comprehensive national review, ESCWA reaffirms its commitment to supporting member States in advancing inclusive social development and strengthening social protection systems that are responsive to evolving social, political, and economic realities.
