The humanitarian-development nexus

Abstract

The more effective a national social protection system is at addressing shocks of different kinds, the less need for additional humanitarian cash transfers. The ‘shock-responsive social protection’ agenda has emerged to bring greater attention on the potential role for social protection systems in disaster mitigation and response. It is approached from different perspectives depending on the nature of the emergency needs to be covered and the level of maturity of the national social protection system. This chapter offers an introduction to this emerging and rapidly evolving topic social protection practitioners operating in conflict or disaster-prone contexts can no longer ignore. Better articulations and synergies between humanitarian cash transfers and social protection appear essential not least to protect gains made in social protection, avoid duplication of efforts in contexts of scarce resources, and progressively expand basic social protection in situations of extreme fragility, protracted crises and forced displacement towards universal social protection.