The Future of Social Protection in Latin America in a Context of Accelerated Changes

This chapter discusses the future of social protection in Latin America and the challenges the region faces in the three key performance areas: coverage, sufficiency and sustainability. In particular, the chapter analyses how coverage is strongly determined by the structure of employment; limits to expansion given the inability to generate sufficient fiscal space; the consequences of widespread economic and labour informality; governance deficits; and acceleration of population ageing. This chapter also discusses the increasing need for an adequate combination of contributory and non-contributory social protection provision, as well as the need for a better articulation of social protection systems with the sustainable development framework and its three main spheres: economic, social and environmental. Finally, the future of social protection is addressed in the context of growing employment in the services sector, technological change and automation of production and employment as well as the relevance of an adequate social protection response to the consequences of climate change and the effects of natural disasters.