Livingstone: Long viewed as a fallback for hard times, social protection is now being reimagined as a driver of resilience. With rising costs, widening inequality, and fragile economies, governments are searching for ways to make every policy choice count.

According to African Press Organization, these challenges brought policymakers from Africa, Asia, and the Pacific to Livingstone, Zambia, from 8 to 10 July, where they focused on targeted refinements and applied approaches to strengthen social protection. The gathering centered on hands-on methods: tools, data, and policy strategies that help governments respond to poverty, economic shocks, and climate threats with greater precision. It formed part of a broader UN effort to promote universal, adaptive, and inclusive social protection systems worldwide.

Selahattin Selsah Pasali, Social Affairs Officer at ESCAP, highlighted that member states such as Cambodia and the Maldives value the tools’ flexibility and training support, “which helps localize and institutionalize them.” Many are now considering a shift from survey data to administrative records to better design policies and estimate costs. Namibia shared progress in digitizing its social grant system, while Malawi, a global champion for the Social Protection Accelerator, is rolling out a new policy rooted in a lifecycle approach that addresses risks across age groups.

Tanzania is widening its model too. Frank Kilimba from the Office of the Prime Minister stated: "We’re expanding beyond contribution-based systems to ensure broader coverage, especially for informal and rural populations." Rwanda was among the countries exchanging experiences, with Ariane Mugisha, Chief Digital Officer in the Local Government Sector, noting that sessions on social registries and data integration offered key insights into building adaptive systems.

Behind the mix of countries, organizers said, was an intentional effort to draw from diverse settings. Amson Sibanda, Chief of Service at the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), explained, "We brought together small island states like the Maldives and middle-income countries like Namibia with least developed economies such as Malawi and Zambia. Their challenges differ, but their commitment to reform creates a space for grounded exchange."

Mamusa Siyunyi, Social Affairs Officer at ECA, emphasized the necessity of targeted support, stating, "It’s not just the triple crisis of food, fuel, and finance. It’s demographic pressure, climate risk, and limited fiscal space. Countries need support that’s relevant and usable."

Several delegates requested additional training and ongoing technical assistance, while others stressed the need to bridge institutional divides that hinder implementation. Hudha Haleem of the Maldives Bureau of Statistics mentioned, "We have the data, but making it useful means working across silos." Fathimath Nisha Fahmy from the Maldives Pension Office added that geographic realities demand precise, adaptive systems, noting the importance of using real-time data to target and adapt social protection.

Mr. Sibanda underscored the need to match innovation with institutional readiness, emphasizing the requirement for public institutions to harness these tools effectively. "Policymakers should be able to leverage the science-policy interface to make good decisions and future-proof their strategies," he said.

As countries prepare for a series of global forums on social development, the Livingstone meeting formed part of a wider push to build systems that are better designed, better resourced, and better able to reach those most at risk. "Policymakers don’t just need inspiration," said Mr. Oldiges. "They need proof points, blueprints, and allies. That’s what we came here to build."

The three-day interregional workshop was organized by UN DESA, ECA, and ESCAP in collaboration with the government of Zambia. It brought together officials from eight countries across Africa and Asia-Pacific with a shared aim to build smarter, more resilient social protection systems that lift people sustainably, not just catch them when they fall.