The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers

Edited by Tom Lavers

Addresses a notable gap in the literature on social protection by focusing on the political factors shaping programme implementation
Provides detailed case studies of programme implementation in six countries: Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nepal, and Rwanda
Compares the distribution of social transfers within and between countries
Presents research findings that are not just of academic interest, but also highly policy relevant
An open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence

The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers

Edited by Tom Lavers

Description

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations.

The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia provides a systematic analysis of the political processes shaping the distribution of social transfers in six countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. In doing so, the book addresses a notable gap in recent research on social protection concerning the politics of implementation. While considerable attention has been devoted to debating the merits of different policy designs and the political factors shaping the adoption and diffusion of different policy models, ultimately the ability of any social transfer programme to deliver on its promises is dependent on the effective implementation and distribution of social transfers in line with intended objectives. The chapters in this book examine international and sub-national variation in programme implementation in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nepal, and Rwanda, drawing on a common analytical framework that highlights the importance of state capacity and reach, rooted in histories of state formation, and contemporary political competition in shaping the distribution of social transfers. Comparative analysis of the case studies supports the view that variation in the capacity and reach of the state within countries is a centrally important factor shaping the effectiveness and impartiality of distribution. Yet state capacity alone is insufficient. Rather political competition and power relations shape how this capacity is actually deployed in practice. As such, the book underscores the inherently political nature of implementation and questions common technocratic efforts to improve implementation by de-politicizing the social protection policy process.

The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers

Edited by Tom Lavers

Part I: Researching the Distributional Politics of Social Transfers
1:The Global Spread of Social Transfers and the Challenge of Distribution, Tom Lavers
2:The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers, Tom Lavers
Part II: Dominant-Developmental Cases in Africa
3:State Infrastructural Power and Social Transfers: The Local Politics of Distribution and Delivering 'Progress' in Ethiopia, Tom Lavers
4:Distributing Social Transfers in Rwanda: The Case of the Vision 2020 Umurenge Programme (VUP), Timothy P. Williams, Syvlestre Nzahabwanayo, Tom Lavers, and Eric Ndushabandi
Part III: Competitive-Distributive Cases in Africa
5:Uneven Targeting of Cash Transfers: Local Party-political Competition and State Infrastructural Power in the Implementation of Social Protection in Ghana, Edward Ampratwum
6:The Distributional Politics of Social Transfers in Kenya, Alesha Porisky
Part IV: Universalistic-Inclusive Cases in South Asia
7:The Politics of Distributing Social Protection in Bangladesh: Insights From the Primary Education Stipends Project, Naomi Hossain
8:The Politics of Social Protection in Nepal: State Infrastructural Power and Implementation of the Scholarship Programme, Uma Pradhan, Deepak Thapa, Jeevan Baniya, Yangchen Gurung, Sanjay Mahato, and Indrajit Roy
Part V: Comparative Analysis
9:The intersection of state infrastructural power and power relations in the distribution of social transfers: A comparative analysis, Tom Lavers

The Politics of Distributing Social Transfers

Edited by Tom Lavers

Author Information

Edited by Tom Lavers, Senior Lecturer in Politics and Development, University of Manchester

Tom Lavers is a Senior Lecturer in Politics and Development at the University of Manchester's Global Development Institute. His research focuses on the politics of social policy, agrarian transformation, infrastructure, and state-society relations. He was one of the editors of the 2019 book, The Politics of Social Protection in Eastern and Southern Africa. He has previously published on the politics of social protection and other issues in leading journals, including African Affairs, Development and Change, Geoforum, the Journal of Agrarian Change, the Journal of Peasant Studies, Social Science and Medicine, and World Development.

Contributors:

Edward Ampratwum is a Research Associate at the Global Development Institute (GDI), University of Manchester and a senior research fellow at the Center for Democratic Development, Ghana.
Jeevan Baniya is Assistant Director at Social Science Baha (SSB).
Yangchen Gurung is an independent researcher, who was formerly a Research Associate with Social Science Baha (SSB).
Naomi Hossain is a political sociologist based at the Accountability Research Center at American University in Washington DC.
Tom Lavers is a Senior Lecturer in Politics and Development at the University of Manchester's Global Development Institute.
Sanjay Mahato is an independent researcher, who was formerly a Research Associate with Social Science Baha (SSB).
Eric Ndushabandi is Director of the Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace (IRDP) in Rwanda.
Sylvestre Nzahabwanayo is a Lecturer at the University of Rwanda College of Education (UR-CE) and Senior Researcher at the Institute of Research and Dialogue for Peace (IRDP) in Rwanda.
Alesha Porisky is an Assistant Professor at Northern Illinois University in the Department of Political Science.
Uma Pradhan is Leverhulme Early Career Fellow (OSGA - South Asian Studies) and Junior Research Fellow (Wolfson College) at the University of Oxford.
Indrajit Roy is a Senior Lecturer - Global Development Politics at the Department of Politics, University of York.
Deepak Thapa is the Director of Social Science Baha.
Timothy P. Williams is a senior associate at Proteknôn Consulting Group and an adjunct faculty member at Boston College School of Social Work.