Speech by Greg Wilcock, High Commissioner of Australia:
National Social Protection Strategy: High Level Policy Seminar

Radisson Hotel, Dhaka

Saturday 22 September 2012
 

• Honourable Chair Mr. M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan, Secretary, Cabinet Division
• Honourable Chief Guest and Minister for Planning Air Vice Marshal A K Khondaker MP
• Honourable State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Dr Shirin Sharmin Choudhury MP
• Honourable Minister for Food Dr Muhammad Abdur Razzak MP
• Honourable Member, General Economics Division Dr Shamsul Alam
• Secretaries and Distinguished participants

I congratulate Bangladesh on its National Social Protection Strategy.

Next week’s training program for over fifty senior officials from 20 ministries reflects Bangladesh’s commitment to this strategy.

Bangladesh has dedicated around 2.8 billion dollars – or 2.18% of GDP – to social protection, and has committed to increase this to 3% of GDP by 2015, the end of the current Six Year Plan period.

Social protection is critical to economic development. Protecting the poor from hunger and destitution, decreasing malnutrition: this means healthier and more resilient people and communities.

This is so fundamental it barely needs further explanation.

Nevertheless, social protection can be difficult to implement.

Identifying and targeting the poorest can be difficult. Many people living just above the poverty line – those sometimes excluded from social protection measures – are also vulnerable to illness, inflation and the effects of climate change.

An ageing population can be another challenge. Bangladeshis over 60 years may increase from around 7% of population to 12% in 2030 and 22% in 2050.

As Australia and others with ageing populations are still learning, this means greater pressure to plan for and provide post retirement income.

Bangladesh’s Social Protection Strategy is a welcome contribution to the addressing such challenges.

Development partners like Australia welcome the opportunity to provide technical assistance. We will be committed and reliable collaborators for Bangladesh.

Australia, the UK and UNDP envisage a Multi Donor Trust Fund which will be an on-going and flexible source of support. We aim to establish it after extensive consultation with Bangladesh.

I thank the Government of Bangladesh for hosting this event, as well as UNDP and the Economic Policy Research Institute of South Africa for their welcome support.

Thank you inviting me to speak.