2014年-世界发展银行全球_Kyrgyz_Republic_Public_Expenditure_Review_Policy_Notes___Social_Assistance_35页_1mb

Kyrgyz Republic Public Expenditure Review: Social Assistance Summary

Core Content

The Kyrgyz Republic Public Expenditure Review (PER) focuses on the effectiveness of social assistance programs in reducing poverty and improving the well-being of vulnerable populations. The review highlights the challenges in targeting and adequacy of benefits, as well as the need for structural reforms to align social assistance with poverty reduction goals.

Main Views and Key Information

1. Poverty in the Kyrgyz Republic

• Despite a significant decline in poverty over the past decade, the trend has stagnated, with absolute poverty returning to pre-2007 levels in 2012.
• Extreme poverty (defined as insufficient consumption to secure 2,100 calories per day) remained stable at around 5% in 2012.
• Children are disproportionately affected by poverty, with 52.9% of under-six-year-olds and 43% of children aged 6–15 living in poverty.
• Rural areas have higher poverty rates than urban areas, with over 40% of rural residents below the poverty line compared to 31% in urban areas.
• Large households with three or more children are at higher risk of poverty, with 66.7% of such households living in poverty.

2. Social Assistance Spending Trends

• Social assistance spending increased significantly between 2008 and 2010, doubling in some cases.
• The share of social assistance spending in GDP rose from 2.49% in 2008 to 5.70% in 2012.
• The Monthly Benefit for Poor Families with Children (MBPF) is the only poverty-targeted program, but it remains underfunded and has limited coverage, with over 60% of children in the poorest quintile still not receiving benefits.
• The Monthly Social Benefit (MSB) and Cash compensations have seen growth in both absolute and relative terms, while the MBPF has experienced a decline in beneficiaries.

3. Performance of Social Assistance Programs

• Despite increased spending, the performance of social assistance programs in terms of coverage, targeting accuracy, and poverty impact has not improved.
• Categorical programs (e.g., pensioners, veterans, disabled) have benefited more from increased spending, but these programs are not necessarily aligned with poverty reduction goals.
• The means test used in the MBPF program is the only mechanism to ensure targeting to the poor, but it is not sufficient to cover all poor children.
• Benefit adequacy is a major concern, as the Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI) is only about one-third of the extreme poverty line, which is insufficient to meet basic needs.

4. Key Program Dynamics

• The reform of privileges (categorical benefits) started in 2007 and was largely monetized by 2010, replacing many in-kind benefits with cash compensations.
• Electricity compensations and early retirement programs have seen growth in the number of beneficiaries, while the MBPF has seen a decline.
• The reduction in the number of eligible categories for cash compensations has led to a decrease in the number of beneficiaries, but some groups (e.g., high altitude residents) have retained benefits under different programs.

5. Challenges and Recommendations

• The current system is not effective in reducing poverty due to inadequate targeting, low benefit adequacy, and inclusion errors.
• The Government needs to refocus social assistance spending toward pro-poor programs and improve coherence and complementarity among social protection programs.
• Reform options include:
  • Implementing integrated program administration with unified application systems and better coordination.
  • Developing a clear strategy for safety nets with defined objectives, outcomes, and performance indicators.
  • Increasing MBPF budget outlays and improving program design and implementation.
  • Redesigning the portfolio of social programs to be more inclusive and coherent.
  • Reforming the distribution of energy compensations to better target the poor.
  • Reviewing pre-independence policies on early retirement and pension top-ups to ensure they align with current poverty reduction goals.

Conclusion

The Kyrgyz Republic has made progress in increasing social assistance spending, but the impact on poverty reduction remains limited. The system needs to shift from a categorical to a poverty-targeted model, especially for the MBPF, to ensure that the poorest households receive adequate support. This would require policy reforms, better coordination, and increased transparency in the administration of social assistance programs.

References

• KIHS (Kyrgyz Integrated Household Survey) 2011
• World Bank calculations
• Ministry of Social Development and Social Fund data
• UNICEF reports

Annexes

• Annex 1: Tables and Figures (including trends in spending and beneficiary numbers)
• Annex 2: Main social assistance programs and their descriptions

Boxes

• Box 1: World Bank definition of Social Assistance
• Box 2: Social Protection system in the Kyrgyz Republic and financing of social benefits
• Box 3: Reform of the system of privileges
• Box 4: Establishing welfare quintiles
• Box 5: Four roles for Social Assistance