The Role of Community Based Organisations in Social Protection

Abstract

State social protection services cover less than 10% of the population in many African countries. Non-State actors (NSAs) have stepped in to fill the void – especially small self-help groups, which are more numerous, more active, and cumulatively reach more people with more impact than any other part of national social service systems. Independent research in more than 30 diverse areas of Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda shows that community-based organizations (CBOs –self-help groups and membership associations) represent the first and often the only social services that are available and accessible to the people. Virtually every low-income man, woman, and child belongs to or depends on at least one such group. There are thousands of them, everywhere, addressing general welfare or specific vulnerabilities of widows, orphans, and people living with disabilities or HIV/AIDS, refugees, among others. CBOs do more than compensate for State default. Their small size, highly localized operations, and traditional methods – which make them difficult to track and regulate - make them especially efficient and effective at the point of service delivery. They are owned by, run by, and tailored to the community they serve.