This report discusses the contribution of social protection to social inclusion focusing in particular on the extent to which such groups are effectively covered by existing social protection measures. An overall assessment of the impact of social protection on the reduction of poverty and inequality frames the report’s analysis. The report focuses on six social groups: children youth older persons persons with disabilities ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples and international migrants. It considers how gender and socioeconomic status intersect with other group attributes and affect the barriers some groups face. The 2030 Agenda draws attention to these bases of disadvantage when it emphasizes that all should be included “irrespective of age sex disability race ethnicity origin religion or economic or other status”. The Addis Ababa Action Agenda also commits to providing appropriate social protection to all including the vulnerable persons with disabilities indigenous persons children youth and older persons. Each of these groups is at high risk of poverty and exclusion and barriers to their rights. The report assesses the contribution of social protection measures to enhancing opportunities and promoting respect for the rights of the five groups selected.

The 2010 issue of the Report on the World Social Situation focuses on the challenge of achieving poverty reduction. The Millennium Development Goals seek to halve by 2015 the level of extreme poverty that existed since 1990. The Report begins with an overview of global regional and selected country poverty trends over the period 1981-2005 critically examines the conventional policy framework and popular poverty reduction programmes argues that a commitment to eradicating poverty and to enhancing equity and social integration requires consistent actions directed towards sustainable economic growth productive employment creation and social development entailing an integrated approach to economic and social policies for the benefit of all citizens. It recommends consideration of the policy approaches that have dominated the disclosure on growth and poverty thus far.

The 2005 Report on the World Social Situation focuses on the international aspects of inequality. As emphasized by the ten-year review of the implementation of the Copenhagen Declaration and Programme of Action there has been uneven progress in many areas of social development with important regression in others. The main assumption of this report is that issues of equity and inequality have acquired such importance nowadays that it renders a difficult task to strengthen the development agenda without first addressing the segmentation of society that among other reasons rising levels of inequality have produced.

The Report offers new insights into the nature and magnitude of the pressing social problems and the national and international policies required to address them. It examines the core social issues of poverty alleviation productive employment and social integration covering concepts and quantitative indicators as well as policies and strategies.