Gacitúa-Marió, Estanislao; Norton, Andrew; Georgieva, Sophia V.
Description:
The book showcases an innovative
approach to social policy that the author believes can act
to transform the capacity of states to implement policies to
enhance equality of opportunity among citizens. The approach
is built around the framework of social guarantees and
emphasizes multiple dimensions in the delivery of services
and the realization of rights. The social guarantees
approach converts abstract rights into defined standards
that can be used as a framework for making public policy
accountable to citizens. It emphasizes that effective
realization of social rights requires attention not just to
dimensions of access, but also to elements of quality,
financial protection, and the availability of mechanisms of
redress. Social guarantees strengthen citizenship through an
emphasis on the policy mechanisms and democratic processes
needed to define and support such standards. Rigorous
analysis of available public resources and of institutions,
programmatic approaches, and legal frameworks is essential
to underpin the provision of social guarantees and to ensure
that the set standards can be delivered to all.