The Social Protection Indicator for the Pacific: Assessing Progress

Abstract

This publication provides updates on Social Protection Indicators of 13 Pacific developing member countries of the Asian Development Bank. It presents an analysis of 2015 data on social protection programs in the countries, particularly the substantial progress in terms of expenditure and benefit size between 2009 and 2015. Spending favored the nonpoor over the poor. Yet, spending on women remained behind that on men, with the gap even widening. The Social Protection Index—now the Social Protection Indicator—was developed by the Asian Development Bank and its partners as the first comprehensive and quantitative measure of social protection systems in Asia and the Pacific.