Webinar: Measuring the share of public social spending benefitting the poor
Presentation of SDG indicator 1.b.1
An event for the Europe and Central Asia TransMonEE network
In March 2020, a revised Sustainable Development Goals indicator was introduced under the target of creating sound policy frameworks for the goal to end poverty. The revised target aims to assess the proportion of public social spending that accrues to the poor.
A new methodology was adopted with the revised indicator. The methodology builds on existing work and information that is available for estimating other SDG targets. The methodology is simple, basically comparing budget allocation in the social sectors with survey data on outcomes and service utilization. Nevertheless, it is important to review it with various stakeholders. It is also useful to discuss data requirements and the steps involved in estimating and interpreting the results.
The timing of the revised indicator was not propitious. It was approved just a few days before COVID-19 hit the world. Only one country has reported on this indicator to date.
Besides SDG reporting, this indicator is very useful for governments trying to assess and monitor the impact of their efforts to improve their citizens, including children, lives. This information can also be used to better design and plan policies.
Thus, the objective of this event is to present, illustrate, and explain the conceptual elements, content, steps for calculation, and analysis of the results of SDG 1.b.1 (Public social spending benefiting the poor). Existing evidence from over 30 countries (although not officially reported yet) collected and curated by the Commitment to Equity (CEQ) Institute, the World Bank, Save the Children, and UNICEF will also be presented.
It is expected that countries will gradually start to officially report on SDG 1.b.1. In order to support this process, UNICEF and Save the Children will develop supporting material and training opportunities in collaboration with other partners. In particular, we will focus on:
- Facilitating the mapping of existing national data sources
- Reviewing existing estimates
- Supporting countries developing plans to measure the incidence of public social spending
- Training on the measurement methodology
This TransMonEE webinar, targeting the NSOs and other members of national statistical systems in Europe and Central Asia, will provide an opportunity to learn about one of the newest SDG indicators, the methodology to estimate, and existing analysis of its impact.