15 June 2023 Speech by Federal Minister Svenja Schulze at the Global Forum on Social Protection in Berlin

Check against delivery!

Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Axel van Trotsenburg,

It is really a pleasure to have you all here and see how engaged you are. Social protection is one of the most effective instruments for protecting people against poverty. And societies which have a social safety net in place are better able to weather crises. This is something that we have learnt from experience, most recently from our experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. That is another reason why adaptive systems are so important, and this conference has convincingly shown us that social protection creates security.

As a social democrat, social justice is especially close to my heart. Inequalities within and between countries have to be removed. This is another case where social protection is one of the most important instruments that we have.

It makes a major contribution towards reducing the gap between rich and poor. But this can be done far more effectively if it is combined with a progressive revenue policy – locally and globally; if countries use the instruments of spending policy and revenue collection to reduce the social gap.

Ladies and gentlemen, you are gathered here today as experts on this topic from all over the world – come together to share your knowledge and expertise. Let me use this conference as an opportunity to tell you about a new international partnership. Six months ago, in Berlin, the idea for this new partnership was born, in a collaborative effort with the World Bank and the ILO. Under the umbrella of the UN Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions, the new partnership will enable partner countries to develop their social protection systems and pilot adaptive approaches. In order to finance this work, I am pledging 7 million euros from the budget of the German Development Ministry. We want to use this commitment to provide interested partner countries with swift support for strengthening their social safety nets and for crisis prevention. Germany will also make further financial support available for this purpose in the next few years.

I would like to encourage you, ladies and gentlemen, who are here as representatives of other providers of ODA funding, to participate in this initiative politically and financially. I have already received positive signals from some of you, and that is also a positive outcome from the last couple of days.

In many countries around the world, social protection is dramatically underfunded. Many of the countries in question are in the Global South. Many of them are partners of the BMZ. Social budgets need to be increased and governments are responsible for doing that. Because social protection is a core task of every nation state. And it pays off because it is also an investment. It makes it possible for people and economies to develop to their full potential, and it makes societies more crisis-resilient.

Going forward, the Development Ministry will step up its efforts to make sure that people are protected against health risks and against the consequences of pandemics. Adaptive social protection plays an equally important role in cushioning the impacts of climate-related damage, for example when this means that a woman who is a small farmer is able to buy new seed after a drought. In the Sahel, where we are supporting the development of social registers in a joint effort with the World Bank, the World Food Programme and UNICEF, I have seen the difference this makes with my own eyes.

Strong protection systems ultimately benefit all people, because they strengthen social cohesion and make it possible for people to participate in society. But women and girls in particular benefit from universal access. In many countries they are far more affected by poverty and, in addition, they are dependent on patriarchal power structures. That includes being financially dependent. Social protection makes them more independent. That is why inclusive social protection is also a building block of my feminist development policy.

Of course – as with all reforms – the real challenge is in the implementation. How can social protection systems be made to adequately reflect local conditions, especially in fragile contexts? How can the potential of digital solutions be fully used, for example in order to manage social registers and pay benefits quickly? What capacities do administrations need to develop for this?

All these questions and many others have been discussed at this conference and I am impressed by the spirited enthusiasm with which you, dear guests, have dedicated yourselves to these discussions. The outcomes are very, very valuable for my Ministry. They provide a basis for us to new discussions on the next steps that we want to take together. Thank you for being here and for your engaged participation.