Coverage of social safety net programs in richest quintile (% of population) by country
Coverage of social safety net programs shows the percentage of population participating in cash transfers and last resort programs, noncontributory social pensions, other cash transfers programs (child, family and orphan allowances, birth and death grants, disability benefits, and other allowances), conditional...
What the numbers show
Coverage of social safety net programs in richest quintile (% of population) is currently reported for 38 countries. The highest value is 90.2% in Bolivia; the lowest is 1.5% in Pakistan.
The median across all reporting countries is 24.6%, and the mean is 28.5%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 59.
Over the past decade 18 countries rose and 20 fell. The largest increase was in Russia (up 223.1%), and the largest decrease in Ecuador (down 92.9%).
Coverage of social safety net programs in richest quintile: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bolivia | 90.2% | 2021 | up 62.6% | rising |
| 2 | Vietnam | 87.0% | 2020 | up 222.3% | volatile |
| 3 | El Salvador | 77.5% | 2022 | up 1.0% | volatile |
| 4 | Thailand | 71.2% | 2021 | up 92.9% | rising |
| 5 | Mongolia | 68.3% | 2020 | down 24.0% | falling |
| 6 | Georgia | 55.8% | 2021 | up 5.5% | rising |
| 7 | Peru | 51.8% | 2022 | down 35.7% | volatile |
| 8 | Russia | 50.0% | 2017 | up 223.1% | rising |
| 9 | Chile | 45.8% | 2022 | up 6.2% | falling |
| 10 | Romania | 43.4% | 2021 | up 1.8% | rising |
| 11 | Poland | 34.8% | 2019 | up 21.4% | falling |
| 12 | South Africa | 33.9% | 2021 | up 51.7% | rising |
| 13 | Belarus | 33.4% | 2019 | down 28.0% | falling |
| 14 | Indonesia | 33.1% | 2022 | up 106.6% | rising |
| 15 | Ukraine | 32.7% | 2020 | down 10.9% | rising |
| 16 | Panama | 31.0% | 2023 | up 65.4% | rising |
| 17 | Mexico | 28.1% | 2022 | up 122.9% | rising |
| 18 | Malawi | 26.0% | 2019 | up 39.9% | falling |
| 19 | Uruguay | 24.7% | 2022 | down 17.6% | falling |
| 20 | Dominican Republic | 24.6% | 2021 | up 179.5% | volatile |
| 21 | Armenia | 24.4% | 2022 | up 38.2% | rising |
| 22 | Moldova | 17.2% | 2018 | down 28.7% | falling |
| 23 | Paraguay | 17.0% | 2022 | down 40.7% | rising |
| 24 | Kazakhstan | 15.5% | 2021 | down 39.2% | volatile |
| 25 | Sri Lanka | 11.7% | 2019 | up 133.0% | rising |
| 26 | Costa Rica | 11.6% | 2022 | down 10.5% | falling |
| 27 | Honduras | 8.9% | 2019 | down 75.4% | falling |
| 28 | Serbia | 5.7% | 2022 | up 48.7% | rising |
| 29 | Colombia | 4.3% | 2022 | down 72.5% | volatile |
| 30 | Cote d'Ivoire | 3.8% | 2021 | down 75.9% | falling |
| 31 | Kyrgyzstan | 3.7% | 2020 | down 26.6% | rising |
| 32 | Argentina | 3.6% | 2022 | down 59.5% | volatile |
| 33 | Brazil | 3.1% | 2022 | down 77.6% | volatile |
| 34 | Ecuador | 2.4% | 2022 | down 92.9% | volatile |
| 35 | Turkey | 2.1% | 2019 | down 42.1% | volatile |
| 36 | Albania | 1.8% | 2018 | down 89.8% | volatile |
| 37 | Kosovo | 1.7% | 2017 | down 23.6% | rising |
| 38 | Pakistan | 1.5% | 2018 | down 55.3% | volatile |
About this data
Coverage of social safety net programs shows the percentage of population participating in cash transfers and last resort programs, noncontributory social pensions, other cash transfers programs (child, family and orphan allowances, birth and death grants, disability benefits, and other allowances), conditional cash transfers, in-kind food transfers (food stamps and vouchers, food rations, supplementary feeding, and emergency food distribution), school feeding, other social assistance programs (housing allowances, scholarships, fee waivers, health subsidies, and other social assistance) and public works programs (cash for work and food for work). Estimates include both direct and indirect beneficiaries.