Download Session III, on Social Integration and Related Concept, In particcular

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
Division for Social Policy and Development
In collaboration with the Government of Finland
Expert Group Meeting
“Promoting Social Integration”
Convened in preparation for the 47th session of the Commission for Social Development
8-10 July 2008, Helsinki, Finland
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Draft for discussion in Session III
Social Integration and Related Concepts:
A Bottom up Perspective of Theories in Real Life:
Illustration from Egypt
Analytical Paper
by
Seheir Kansouh-Habib, Consultant
1
Introduction
The purpose of this statement is to share lessons learnt from managing processes that
have aimed at transferring internationally-conceived theories and concepts into practice
since 1990. It is hoped that they will contribute meaningfully to the discussions that will
ultimately facilitate the task of having social integration and related concepts “politically
acceptable to representatives of Member States during the 47th session of the UN
Commission for Social Development in 2009”.
The views and issues raised below build on actual experience in Egypt since the launch
of the UNDP People-centered paradigm and the Human Development measurement tools
that have been in constant evolution since 1990; the Rio Conference on the Environment
(1992); the Cairo Population Conference (1994); the Copenhagen World Social Summit
(1995); the Beijing Women Conference (1995) and, the Istanbul UNHABITAT
Conference (1996). They also build on experience with reporting on country progress
towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agreed to by 147
countries at the Millennium Summit of 2000.
Social Integration and related Concepts, beyond Semantics
Social integration, social inclusion, and social cohesion are almost synonymous but they
are not. Of the three, the most wholesome – in the view of the writer is social integration
as it would logically embody the other two. Of the three, it may be the more difficult to
be accepted by all governments once all the binding elements that would be required to
achieve it will be detailed. But like the Declaration of Human Rights, like Democracy,
like the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
(CEDAW), all may agree about them in theory, but in practice achievements are modest
as related to the desired outcome.
There is something in common about all above concepts; they are all concerned with
human relations and require concessions that find resistance among people or groups of
people because they would eventually cause shifts in power.
Those in power or the privileged, do not wish to loosen control over resources or share
their advantages. This is quite obvious in the case of democracy, which is a power
struggle. In the case of social integration, people may welcome or dismiss it depending
on which side of the fence they are: For example, someone coming from a lower class,
would assumingly wish to be integrated in the higher one. If this someone belongs to the
higher class, he/she would not wish to include the one coming from the lower class in
his/her circle. Even when, because of newly acquired wealth, some members of the
lower classes go up the social ladder, they are nicknamed “nouveaux riches” and avoided.
Such an attitude is called “snobbism”, but some people are proud to be called a snob and
to be perceived as such.
Aiming at social integration assumes the need to encourage acceptance of the other and
interrelations among groups who may not share affinity, common goals, or have empathy
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to one another, and or, who are weaker - or else there would not have been a problem.
Therefore, it is argued that social integration will not be forthcoming without state
intervention.
Now that the role of most governments that opted for the market economy is receding to
regulatory functions there is a need for them to develop cohesive sets of regulatory
measures, legislations, policies and programmes, towards equity. They need to adopt a
goal that goes beyond the elimination of discriminatory policies and practices into
valorizing all citizens, irrespective of their class, function, gender, age or religion, in a
way that gives them dignity.
Should this happen, dependency of one group on the other will lessen, their attitude
towards one another will be that of deference and not contempt. To this effect, there is a
well known list of things to do that includes, but is not restricted to making accessible to
all: equal opportunity for education, decent employment, medical insurance, decent
public transportation, providing adequate services and access to water and sanitation.
Quarters where the poor live should not be allowed to look like slums.
In most of the developing world, the disabled and the aged are not integrated in society.
With the phasing out of the expanded family, and the scarcity – or high cost - of nursing
homes, the elderly and the disabled have no place to go except staying with any
remaining members of their family, who may or may not be willing to give them shelter
depending on their financial situation and/or other personal circumstances, including
psychological readiness.
To integrate the disabled and the elderly requires that they have a degree of
independence that gives them also the right to choose – to the extent possible - the way
they want to spend their lives. The governments should offer them the facilities and
services that reduce their dependency and give them dignity by not becoming, or having
the feeling to be a burden on their families and society.
When drawing a mental comparison between the concepts under review, “society for
all”, would seem to be the most germane to equity and a society without drop out.
“Social cohesion” gives a sense of “unity”. This is a condition that comes naturally to
entire societies of same state or region when faced with a common threat or a common
fate. Under normal circumstances social cohesion consists more of clusters among groups
sharing same ideologies or who need to form pressure groups to fight for a right (staff
unions, for example).
Social cohesion among sub-groups of a given agenda can also be a threat to security.
Such phenomenon has been witnessed in recent years among fundamentalist groups (of
any religion). The use of the internet has greatly helped in rallying people from all over
the world around specific goals. There are also beneficial networks such as the green
networks, etc. The above two extreme cases are just given for illustration purpose, to
show how the same tool can be used for good or evil. A sort of Aladdin lamp.
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It is argued that a strategic path towards achieving social integration, social inclusion or
a society for all, is to promote the adoption of “integrated social policies”. In Egypt and
at UNESCWA, conferences were held to share experts’ views on how to put the concept
of integrated social policies into practice. An introduction to the background paper
produced by Dr.Saad Z.Nagi for UNESCWA, is appended to this statement as it is
believed to offer good insights to “The Meaning of Social Policy”. Egypt Human
Development Report 2008 (www.undp.org.eg) provides a summary of progress with
regards to developing an integrated social policy in Egypt (Vide Chapter Six, Box 6.1 on
page 128 of the report).
An integrated social policy framework can also help achieve the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs). Justifications follow:
MDGs have managed to gain a worldwide acceptance since the 2000 Summit. A system
of tracking countries’ progress to achieve them has been developed and is operational.
MDGs, however, do not offer a cohesive framework that integrates the eight goals. This,
it is believed, is a major caveat and may account for the fact that midway from target year
2015, the sum total of progress achieved in all eight MDGs does not fulfill expectations.
What is proposed, therefore, is to use MDGs as the objectives – or expected outcome –
of integrated social policies, and to follow the traditional project logic (outcome-outputactivities-inputs) to start designing the frame and mechanisms in which integrated social
policies would be channeled and directed towards reaching MDGs and their targets. In
this context, it is proposed to conceive a ninth MDG that ensures the availability and
functioning of a mechanism for coordination and governance(for checks and balance).
The proposal to make integrated social policies the approach used to achieve MDGs is
considered to be down to earth, action-oriented and should add value to the MDGs’ work
in progress.
How to make social reform viable in a market economy
The concepts of social integration, social cohesion, inclusion, and their relation to equity,
and decent labour cannot be viewed in isolation from the fact that most developing
countries, and Egypt is one of them, are struggling to establish viable market economies
to replace previous socialist and welfare approaches that did not prove to be viable.
However, it is claimed that several of the social arguments and calls for equity raised in
the various international conferences of the 1990s were a form of reaction to the fact that
the Economic Reform and Structural Adjustment prescription advocated by the
International Financial Institutions (IFIs) in the 1980s failed to adequately address
distribution and equity issues which they thought they would resolve by helping to
establish social funds for development (SFDs) as safety nets for the protection of
vulnerable groups from the initial side effects of their prescriptions.
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It is to be recalled that the welfare state was introduced in Egypt in 1952, and was to stop
with the launching of the economic reform and structural adjustment programme
(ERSAP) in the 1980s. However, most ERSAP’s principles were violated because the
Government was unable to apply them in real life. For example, reducing the size of
employees in the government and the public sector – as is prescribed under civil service
reform (a requirement of the structural adjustment process) was not possible because this
would have increased unemployment that was already prevailing (especially among
women who form the bulk of government employees). The private sector, that was to
substitute for the government as major employer, first did not grow to the extent needed;
second as per market economy, it needs to be capital oriented, for profit, whereas the
government encourages it to be “labour intensive” to create jobs for youth, who form the
bulk of the Egyptian population. This is why unemployment among young graduates
constitutes one of the major problems facing Egypt. The “exclusion” of many Egyptian
youth from mainstream development has, in turn, resulted in either brain drain, or unrest.
It is also a well known fact that subsidies go against the principle of the market economy.
Removing subsidies – that bring down prices of essential goods far below their real cost should have been one of the measures taken by Egypt as part of its economic reform.
Yet, every time this option is about to be implemented, social agitation occurs and
appeasing means are always used to stop such agitation. However, such means could
neither solve problems at their roots, nor even alleviate symptoms in effective ways.
While still “dancing” with the subsidy issue, the Egyptian Government had to face the
global food price crisis. In a recent gesture to help Egyptians cope with an unavoidable
inflation, President Mubarak decided to give an unprecedented increase of a minimum of
30% and a maximum of 80%1 of salaries. Though such increases are considered ruinous
to treasury, the basic salaries to which such percentages apply are so low that increases
are far from compensating people for their purchasing power loss, especially among low
income groups. The standards of living of the masses are therefore expected to further
decline if the price of the barrel of oil continues to go higher and wheat fields are turned
into fields of fuel crops.
Examples abound about the numerous tribulations Egyptians complain from and the firstaid remedies adopted by the government to ease them It is not within the scope of this
statement to be more elaborate about conditions in Egypt. The main lesson to be drawn
from stating them, however, is to illustrate the conflict arising between the need to carry
out a major structural adjustment process that can lead to economic reform and the
market economy on the one hand, and taking populist decisions when faced by the need
to “manage by crisis”, on the other hand. While all this is causing a serious set back in the
economic reform process, poverty and divides, as well as youth and women’s
unemployment will continue to stand against any wishful attempt at social integration,
inclusion or cohesion.
1
80% of basic salary were granted in the case when such salaries are so low that they go below poverty
line.
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Modernization and new technologies will also have their bearing on the labour market.
While matching supply and demand has been a cause of concern in a large number of
countries, it is believed that the situation may worsen if not addressed: Fast changes and
recent developments require knowledge and skills that may not exist, while re-orienting
educational systems takes a long time. Ongoing training and learning could be one of the
solutions provided it is structured and not left to whims. Modernization could also have
immediate negative effects on the poor. The recent agricultural biotechnology and its
commercialization is a case in point. Changes in the agricultural domain (expected to be
further exacerbated by global climate change) would presumably have negative effects on
traditional small farmers who could find themselves redundant or unable to cope with the
requirements of an agricultural age for which they were not prepared in view of their low
education, and often analphabetism.
To this effect, Judith Maxwell 2(1996) “considers the relationship between social
cohesion and a range of social conditions that indicate when a society fails to function
adequately”. Maxwell defines social cohesion as the sharing of values that reduce
“…disparities in wealth and income” while giving people a sense of community. It is
assumed from this definition that strongly cohesive societies are better able to face the
challenges posed by social, economic and technological change. Many of the debates
over new innovations in agricultural biotechnology pick up on this thread. According to
the World Bank, this provides “a unique opportunity to chart how agricultural
communities adjust to this suite of technologies”.
The relatively new call to all institutions to assume “Corporate Social Responsibility”
(CSR) is a welcome initiative. However, new terminologies are not always read as they
are meant to be. For example, at national levels some consider calls for CSR as a subtle
way by which the private sector is asked to do what the state is supposed to be doing and
wonder whether this is not a new form of taxes. Objectives and requirements may need to
be clearer. This is especially that, almost ten years earlier (1999) the UN had used
another nomenclature the “Global Compact” which called on companies and other
organizations to pledge to adhere to and advance 10 broad principles in the areas of
human rights, labour, the environment and anti-corruption.
At international levels, CSR may be clearer. For instance CIDA (The Canadian
International Development Agency) requires that a full viability study is concluded
before they agree to finance a project. Viability studies are to include an environmental
assessment and a social and gender assessment. In the past, the focus of feasibility
studies was on the economic viability of projects.
Sizing problems
There are major factors, often overlooked - that have bearing on the realization of targets
and goals, especially in areas as complex as the social domains. A most important factor
in the opinion of the writer is a major disproportion between assessing the size, the scale
and complexity of a problem and the estimation of the human, material, institutional
2
Judith Maxwell is Past President and Senior Fellow of the Canadian Policy Research Networks [CPRN].
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capacity, and the time needed to solve it. Furthermore, when comparing progress
achieved by countries in meeting MDGs targets by 2015, the fact that the scale of their
problems differ in size and complexity is not usually taken into consideration. The
following examples are given for illustration purposes:
The number of illiterates 15+ in Egypt exceeds 50% of a population of nearing 80 million
inhabitants3. In absolute terms, this means that there is a need to eradicate the illiteracy of
more than 25 million people. Calling Egypt country X against another country Y whose
total population, for example, does not exceed 3 million. How can it be possible to
expect that country X and Y will be able to reduce their illiteracy by 15% over the same
period of time, and is it possible to draw a comparison between their performance as if
the tasks and the resources needed to carry them were equal? The same goes for poverty.
20% of the Egyptian population are estimated to live below the poverty line. What is
required in Egypt to eradicate the poverty of 16 million people is hard to compare to the
needs of another country where the poor do not exceed one million, for example.
It is argued that addressing issues at their right scale is a must. It is only when the size of
the problem, its complexity and its inter-relation with other problems are defined that the
right methods, resources and time to achieve them can be identified .
Where social dichotomies exist
In Egypt, uneven spatial development and population explosion have been, and continue
to be, a main cause for the migration of the rural population to the main cities, and
especially Cairo. This has had a heavy toll on basic infrastructure, traffic, transport and
other services because of high density, and consequently on the quality of life. New
forms of social dichotomies developed when new crowds, street vendors, street children,
mixed with cars in double and triple parkinglines started to invade quiet quarters and
disturb its residents.
As a way out, more and more of the upper and middle classes have opted to flee the
quarters in which they grew, to live in gated communities where they enjoy a state of
wellbeing and quality of life among their peers. By doing so, they totally excluded
themselves from the ordinary people and their problems. Their children grow hardly
knowing the world outside their compounds, having their special schools, their special
clubs. The media brings to their homes via TV screens the ugly face of poverty, street
children, wars, etc. so some engage in charitable works. Therefore, while on the one hand
social integration, inclusion and cohesion are being promoted, a process of deliberate
disintegration and isolation from the bulk of society occurs.
Can those people be blamed – some of whom having worked hard to be there - from
seeking a quality of life for them and their families away from the crowd, the polluted
streets, the creeping signs of poverty, the sight of slums and ugly informal housing? At
this very time when the UN is discussing social integration, is there a way to stop such
signs of social disintegration, of diaspora? Or is it a million dollar question?
3
Estimates about the number of illiterates in Egypt differ greatly depending on the source.
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The following factors are believed to have strong effects on social integration, in positive
or negative ways:
1. Human relations and social bonds exist when there are common grounds or
shared values. This is a characteristic of human nature and is found among
animals and birds, as implied in the old adage “birds of a feather flock
together”. They can also be triggered by common goals and interests,
irrespective of feelings of liking or disliking or feeling of being superior in any
way as we can see from relations bonding masters and slaves (not taken
literally), kings and commoners, teachers and students (thus transcending
generation gaps), members of the same political party (thus transcending class)
etc.
2. Human relations break when people embrace different lifestyles, belong to
different ideologies, or school of thoughts; when inequity prevails in power, in
wealth, in physical or mental fitness, in education, and/or when interests are
conflicting even when blood relation exists such as in the case of inheritance
and dispute over shared goods, opposition among political parties; etc. Feuds
splitting families in traditional societies are also hard to mend.
3. The scale and speed with which a new mix of modernism and conservatism
formed within the very fabric of the one society is creating social dichotomies
and dual cultures that cannot be overlooked when examining factors that may
constrain social integration. They are hard to control, especially because of
globalization effects, and new communication tools. Keeping pace with the fast
changes affecting social matrices is deemed to constitute a major challenge for
those promoting the concepts of social integration.
Agents of Change
Having reviewed issues that are assumed to affect social integration, positively or
negatively, it is deemed appropriate to identify the main agents of change that play key
roles in this domain, also in positive or negative ways. Some of such agents are listed , in
clusters, as follows4 :
Institutions, starting from the family and home (parental, sibblings and peers’
influence); law and the respect of the rule of law5; education; policies; public
service; large scale programmes and projects; the business sector; the media;
safety nets. infrastructure, spatial development.
2. External influences of either well-intentioned bodies such as the UN system of
agencies, human rights’ watch or environmental activists, or of politically
motivated governments who adopt isolationism as the motto on which their
bilateral relations are founded and which is defined as: “a government policy
1.
4
5
The list is not restrictive.
Noting that they are not the same, as a law may exist but is not observed.
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based on the belief that national interests are best served by avoiding economic
and political alliances with other countries” 6
3. The immense new role played by Information and Communication Technology
(ICT), in motivating social groups to form coalitions, sometimes for the good of
people, sometimes not. On the positive side there are: Environmentalists who
attempt to protect inter-generational equity by advocating the need for this
generation to save the resources of the planet for the generations to come7. On the
negative side there are terrorist groups who use the net for fast communication
and instructions among them.
4. The church8 and preachers who, in the name of religion, teach followers to look
down at other religions, and attitude of fundamentalist with regards to women.
Agitators and financiers of movements that rally one group against the other and
throw fuel on tensed relations.
5. Globalization at large whose impact is much larger than the sum total of factors
such as ICT. Borrowing a provocative question raised by Judith Maxwell9 in a
publication of same title: “Globalization - who will be the Guardian of the Public
Interest”. It is to be noted that at the time the World Social Summit took place in
1995, the full impact of globalization was not as visible as it is today and hence
all its ramifications were not taken into consideration when the platform for action
was formulated.
Conclusions and Recommendations:
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Proposals leading to equity, inclusion and using a “society for all” concept should
not become another socialist Manifesto10 which proved its collapse in the countries
which adopted it. They should be conceived for market economies so that these
market economies become people-friendly.
While “society for all” and inclusion depend on the paradigm adopted by the state,
social integration and social cohesion depend on human relations. They are more
difficult to attain, but equity, a stable environment, and good governance will
eventually lead to them
To the eight MDGs, there is a need to add a ninth goal for coordination and
governance
Using an “integrated social policies” approach can help meet MDGs. This would be
meant to add value to work in progress.
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6
Source: Encarta Dictionary (on web)
It is well known that the US did not sign the Kyoto Protocol activities that would reduce its carbon
dioxide foot print and all the negative effects this has on the environment, is not willing to sign the Kyoto
protocol, while most of other countries have done it. This is a reflection of the power some pressure groups
and lobby have on the US administration.
8
In its broader sense embracing all religions.
7
9
Op.cit.
10
Manifesto of the Communist Party. 1848. By Karl Marx and Frederick Engels
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Any initiative in the social sphere has to have its cost calculated and has to prove its
economic viability or else it will not be sustained.
Any growth theory that does not take into full consideration the impact on the people
at large, and not only on the privileged few, is bound to fail.
“Corporate Social Responsibility” (CSR) needs clarification as to what is really
meant by it, with the 10 principles of the “Global Compact” embedded in it.
Any policy, programme, project needs to be preceded by a social assessment, an
environmental assessment and an economic assessment which should be part of the
CSR of investors or policy maker.
Failure to adequately budget social policies and programmes and allocate the
necessary resources (financial, human, material, institutional), to sustain them will not
produce desired outcome, nor sustain outputs.
It is essential to define the scale of problems, for which it is imperative to have
reliable and timely data and indicators as this will in turn determine the cost and
institutional capacity to resolve them.
Reducing the lead time between defining issues and resolving them is essential as the
interrelation of problems and their clustering effects would create new sets of issues
that may become insurmountable. This recommendation is also addressed to all
financial institutions that normally have very lengthy appraisal and approval
processes before funds are released.
It is most important to capitalize on elements of strength existing in each society, and,
accordingly, to decide on priority areas of interventions that are estimated to have
snowboard effects on other areas in most direct ways.
New communication tools such as the internet have strong ability to mobilize social
alliances around issues. The effect could be positive (green movements) or negative
(terrorism). It is not possible to control them but their negative influence could be
mitigated if equity, stability and welfare exist.
Avoiding confusing governments with a never ending flow of new slogans requires
that coordination also exists within the UN’ own machinery.
Who gets What? When? and How? are the ultimate questions to answer.
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