ILO urges Philippines to link social protection with disaster management

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines and other countries in Asia were urged recently to provide better social protection for workers to cushion the impact of future natural calamities and hazards.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) stressed the importance of social protection programs such as cash transfer in strengthening the defense of workers and other people from natural disasters.

“Disasters are not inevitable; the capacity of the population to prepare and respond to hazards decides whether it will turn into a disaster or not. In this sense, linking better social protection and disaster risk management will contribute significantly to mitigating the social and economic impact of natural hazards,” ILO country office head Khalid Hassan said.

According to the ILO, natural disasters affect poorer countries and their populations more because of fewer resources and assets for coping and recovery.

Disasters hit people of all economic levels and may push the previously non-poor into poverty. Thus social protection can play a crucial role in times of natural disasters. 

The ILO said social protection programs, such as cash transfers, reduce poverty and vulnerabilities to income shocks, and contribute to building human capital and diversifying assets and sources of incomes.