OECD Economics Department Working Papers

ISSN :
1815-1973 (en ligne)
DOI :
10.1787/18151973
Cacher / Voir l'abstract
Working papers from the Economics Department of the OECD that cover the full range of the Department’s work including the economic situation, policy analysis and projections; fiscal policy, public expenditure and taxation; and structural issues including ageing, growth and productivity, migration, environment, human capital, housing, trade and investment, labour markets, regulatory reform, competition, health, and other issues.
 

Reducing Poverty in Estonia Through Activation and Better Targeting You or your institution have access to this content

Auteur(s):
Sarah Flèche1, Artur Radziwill
Author Affiliations
  • 1: Ecole d’économie de Paris, France

Date de publication
10 déc 2012
Bibliographic information
N°:
1008
Pages
48
DOI
10.1787/5k8xb72v68bx-en

Cacher / Voir l'abstract

The crisis revealed the need for a strategic review of the existing social protection system in Estonia. Extreme income fluctuations on one side and low social benefits on the other side exposed fragile groups in the population to a significant poverty risk. The government has recently commissioned several studies to prepare a systematic reform of the system. The spectrum of options is wide and includes increased generosity, further efficiency gains, strengthening incentives, better access to services and more ambitious activation. In particular, all support programmes should be designed to maximise the prospects of re-integrating beneficiaries into employment. Social benefit recipients should therefore become regular clients of the unemployment insurance offices, and they should benefit from job search assistance and active labour market policies. Scarce resources should be more targeted to those in greatest need. Addressing the large inflows into the disability system is a priority.
Mots-clés:
flexibility, social policy, Estonia, well-being, volatility, parental benefits, disability, poverty, inequality, healthcare, taxation, active labour market policies
Classification JEL:
  • E32: Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics / Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles / Business Fluctuations; Cycles
  • I18: Health, Education, and Welfare / Health / Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
  • I38: Health, Education, and Welfare / Welfare and Poverty / Government Policy; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
  • J13: Labor and Demographic Economics / Demographic Economics / Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
  • J21: Labor and Demographic Economics / Demand and Supply of Labor / Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
  • J65: Labor and Demographic Economics / Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies / Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings