SOCIAL SAFETY NETS AND COMMUNAL SOLIDARITY SYSTEMS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF MEXICO AND ETHIOPIA
Résumé (anglais)
Achieving SDG 1 (No Poverty) requires eradicating extreme poverty (Target 1.1), reducing at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty (Target 1.2), implementing nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all (Target 1.3), and building the resilience of the poor and those in vulnerable situations (Target 1.5). Social safety nets, including cash transfers, food assistance, public works, school feeding, and fee waivers, are a primary policy instrument for reducing poverty and vulnerability in low- and middle-income countries. However, many societies also have indigenous communal solidarity systems, including rotating savings groups, mutual aid associations, funeral societies, and kinship-based support networks, that predate formal social protection and continue to fill gaps where state provision is weak or absent. This study conducts a comparative analysis of social safety nets and communal solidarity systems in Mexico and Ethiopia, two countries with contrasting economic profiles, poverty dynamics, and social protection histories but shared reliance on informal solidarity networks. Mexico, an upper-middle-income country, has a long history of social protection, including the pioneer conditional cash transfer programme Progresa, later Oportunidades and Prospera, and now the comprehensive Bienestar system. Ethiopia, a low-income country, has one of Africa's largest social protection programmes, the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP), reaching 8 million people annually. Using a qualitative comparative case study methodology, the study analyzes secondary data from government reports, international databases, and peer-reviewed literature over the period 2000 to 2025. The study finds that both countries rely on hybrid social protection, combining formal safety nets with informal solidarity systems. Mexico's Progresa and its successors have reduced poverty but persistent inequality remains, with indigenous populations facing higher poverty rates. Communal solidarity systems such as tequio and guelaguetza remain strong in indigenous communities but are under pressure from migration and urbanization. Ethiopia's PSNP reduces food insecurity and protects assets but is chronically underfunded and donor-dependent. Indigenous solidarity systems such as iqqub, idir, and debo remain widespread but face climate and economic shocks. The study concludes that effective poverty reduction requires integrated approaches that strengthen formal social protection while supporting communal solidarity systems in complementarity. Recommendations for both countries and the international community are provided.
Mots-clés: Social safety nets; communal solidarity; Mexico; Ethiopia; SDG 1; conditional cash transfers; Productive Safety Net Programme; idir; iqqub; tequio
Résumé (français)
Atteindre l'ODD 1 (Pas de pauvreté) nécessite d'éradiquer la pauvreté extrême et de mettre en place des systèmes nationaux de protection sociale. Les filets de sécurité sociale sont un instrument essentiel de réduction de la pauvreté. Cette étude analyse les filets de sécurité sociale et les systèmes de solidarité communautaire au Mexique et en Éthiopie. Le Mexique dispose d'un système complet de protection sociale (Bienestar), y compris les transferts monétaires conditionnels (Progresa, Oportunidades, Prospera). Les systèmes de solidarité communautaire comprennent le tequio (travail communautaire obligatoire), la guelaguetza (échange de cadeaux) et les caisses d'épargne communautaires. L'Éthiopie dispose du Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP), l'un des plus grands programmes de protection sociale en Afrique (8 millions de bénéficiaires). Les systèmes de solidarité communautaire comprennent l'iqqub (épargne rotative), l'idir (société funéraire) et le debo (partage de la main-d'œuvre). L'étude conclut que la réduction de la pauvreté nécessite des approches hybrides (filets de sécurité formels et systèmes de solidarité communautaire). Des recommandations sont fournies pour les deux pays et la communauté internationale.
Mots-clés: filets de sécurité sociale, solidarité communautaire, Mexique, Éthiopie, ODD 1, transferts monétaires conditionnels, PSNP, idir, iqqub, tequio