Social Development, State and Social Security Reform on the Threshold of the 21st Century

The first part of the paper provides the selection criteria of ten countries with different economic and social development levels and different social reforms; namely: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Chile, Salvador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay. The second part of the paper lists the economic and social costs of the 80’s crisis and the 90’s recovery, marking differences among the nations in both aspects.

The third part offers a general view and trends in the development of social security in those ten countries; causes and effects of the crisis are summarised; reforms of superannuation funds and health service are analysed, and the state of unemployment benefit is described. Concerning reform of superannuation funds, the different models implemented are discussed, as well as the role of state and comparative performance. In the health area, a distinction is made between the reforms based on monopoly or prevalence of the public sector and those with a significant participation of the private sector.

The fourth part analyses social policies targeted at the population not covered by social security, which is over two thirds in most countries in the hemisphere, including Bolivia, Colombia, Salvador, and Peru. The welfare state is responsible for the poor, and most recently, social protection minimum networks (RMPS), which are described and analysed in detail. Restrictions to the welfare state according to the experience of sampled countries are stated and particularly the performance of RMPS –created in the mid 90’s- is studied.

The fifth part gathers the major lessons on social reform in Latin America, and guidelines on the new social role of the state under the reform are set out. Lessons concerning social reform refer to social cost; economic crisis; structural adjustment and its impact on social security, as well as reforms in the areas of superannuation funds, health, unemployment benefit, welfare state, and RMPS. With regard to the new social role of the state, social policy actions to be undertaken by the state, including economic framework; reform of social security concerning organisation, funding, and coverage; welfare state; RPMS, and education for reform are overviewed. General recommendations on reform, given three groups of countries with different economic and social development levels, each one demanding social policies in line with their needs and economic potential, are covered.