100 years of social pensions in Sweden

– global poverty challenges and experiences of social protection

Speakers presentation

Folkpensionen 100 år – Globala fattigdomsutmaningar och svenska erfarenheter av sociala trygghetssystem

Presentation av talare

Day 1

Plenary 9:15-10:00

Welcome address and keynote

Eva Brunne, Bishop of Stockholm Eva Brunne is Bishop of the Diocese of Stockholm since 2009. She has devotion for human equality regardless gender, ethnicity, religious affiliation or sexual orientation. Her motto as bishop is words chosen from the Epistle of James in the New Testament: "Do no respecter of persons."

Thandika Mkandawire, London school of economics Professor Thandika Mkandawire is currently the Chair in African Development at the London School of Economics and, until last year, was Olof Palme Visiting Professor at the Institute for Future Studies in Stockholm. He has published broadly on the social sciences in Africa and on problems of policymaking, social policy, adjustment and democratization. In 2011 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Helsinki and, in 2013, by the University of Ghana.

Plenary

10:00-12:00

Folkpensionen som en del av det sociala trygghetssystemet i Sverige: 1913- Social pensions in the Swedish social protection system: 1913-

Urban Lundberg, Stockholm University Urban Lundberg has a Phd in history and works at Stockholm University. His thesis was about the big pension reform in Sweden in the nineties. His research touches on different aspects of Nordic and European pension politics, and the role of the state and the individual in Swedish community development. He also works in a project about the history of Swedish development politics.

Joakim Palme, Uppsala University Joakim Palme is professor of political science at the Department of Government, Uppsala University, since 2009. Palme holds a PhD in sociology from 1990, Stockholm University. In 1999-2001 Palme chaired the Swedish ”Welfare Commission” which published a series of volumes on welfare and welfare state policies. From 2002 to 2011 he was the director of the Institute for Futures Studies in Stockholm where he lead research programmes focused on the tension between population change and public policy. Palme is part of many scientific bodies and projects, for example he is President of Research Committee 19 on ”Poverty, social welfare and social policy” of the International Sociological Association.

Ulf Kristersson, Minister for social Security Ulf Kristersson is a Swedish Moderate Party politician serving as Minister for Social Security since 2010. His remit covers social insurance, including medical insurance and pensions and the administration of social insurance in Sweden. Previously he was one of the vice mayors in Stockholm and in 1991 was elected to the Riksdag and served until 2000. In 2000 Ulf Kristersson published the book "Welfare and safety in a new economy”.

Moderator: Ulrika Knutson Ulrika Knutson is a writer and well-known Swedish cultural journalist. She writes columns for the national radio and several newspapers. Ulrika Knutson was the chairman of The National Swedish Press Club 2009-2012.

Plenary

13:30-15:00

Expansion of social protection in developing countries today Utvecklingen av sociala trygghetssystem i utvecklingsländer idag

Armando Barrientos, University of Manchester Mr. Barrientos is Professor and Research Director at the Brooks World Poverty Institute at the University of Manchester in the UK. His research interests focus on the linkages existing between welfare programmes and labour markets in developing countries, and on policies addressing poverty, vulnerability, and population ageing.

Ramiro Ornelas, former General Director of Priority Groups of Social Development Ministry, Mexico

Michael Cichon, International Council of Social Welfare Dr. Michael Cichon is a member of the German Actuarial Association, and in 2013 he was appointed professor of social protection at the Graduate School of Governance of Maastricht University/United Nations University in the Netherlands. Before that he served as Director of the ILO’s Social Security Department. He has undertaken and supervised technical cooperation assignments in social protection in over 30 ILO member states worldwide. Michael Cichon is President of the International Council of Social Welfare (ICSW), a network of civil society organisations promoting social welfare, social development and social justice.

Moderator: Ronald Wiman Ronald Wiman is Development Manager in charge of Global Social Policy at the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare and External Senior Advisor on Social Development to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. He is also Editor-In-Chief of the Global Social Policy web portal at THL (www.thl.fi/gsp-info).

15.30 – 17.00 Parallel session a)

15:30-17:00

Pensions and development

Charles Knox-Vydmanov, HelpAge International Charles Knox-Vydmanov is Social Protection Policy Advisor at HelpAge International. In his five years at HelpAge, Charles has led the development of the “Pension Watch” hub on social pensions (www.pension-watch.net) which includes a comprehensive database of all social pensions globally. Charles has been involved in analysis of old age poverty and the feasibility of social pensions in countries including Bangladesh, Belize, Kenya, Indonesia, Mozambique, Myanmar and Tanzania and undertaken extensive work on costing of social pensions and other cash transfers, for example, through a costing of universal pensions in 50 low- and middle-income countries.

Ari Kokko, Copenhagen Business School Ari Kokko is professor at the Department of International Economics and Management at Copenhagen Business School. He works mainly on issues related to internationalization and development in Asia, but has also an interest in Nordic and European economic affairs and economic history, as a base for comparative studies. In the past, Mr Kokko has also acted as chairman of a Swedish government commission studying the development of Swedish exports, served for nine years as a board member of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), and is an advisor to the Vietnamese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Olli Kangas, Social Security Institution of Finland Olli Kangas is professor and research director at Kela (Social Insurance Institution of Finland) since 2008. Previously he has been working as professor of Social policy at Turku University (1994-2003) at the Danish Institute for Social Research in Copenhagen (2004-2007). Kangas has been visiting professor in Stockholm, Beijing, Sydney, Budapest, Bremen, Odense and Umeå. His research interests revolve around comparative political economy of the welfare state - causes and consequences.

Joel Mendizabal, Unidad de Análisis de Políticas Sociales y Económicas Joel Mendizabal works as a Research Analyst at the Department of Analysis of Social and Economic Policies of Bolivia. As part of the work of evaluating policies in pensions, banking and insurances fields, he was one of the leaders in analyzing the impact of the social pension called Renta Dignidad. He previously worked at the Ministry of Economics and Finance supporting in the evaluation of the long term financial sustainability of the pensions system in Bolivia

Moderator: Annika Sundén, Swedish Pension Agency Dr. Annika Sundén is the deputy director-general at the Swedish Pensions Agency. She has worked in the pension field both with the administration of the public pension scheme in Sweden and as a researcher. Her research interests include the economics of retirement, pensions and social security, and household savings behavior. She has also worked as the Associate Director for Research at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College and an economist at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington, DC, where she was involved in the design and implementation of the Survey of Consumer Finances.

15.30 – 17.00 Parallel session b

15:30-17:00

Current debates around Swedish/EU social protection Aktuell debatt om sociala trygghetssystem i Sverige och EU

Eskil Wadensjö; Stockholm University Eskil Wadensjö is Professor of Labour Economics at the Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI) at Stockholm University since 1980. He was Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Stockholm University 1996-2005. He has been member of several governmental commissions and contributed with studies for several international organizations (EU, ILO, OECD, the Nordic Council and European Council). His main research interests are the economics of international migration, labour market policy and social policy. Current research topics are the economic effects of immigration to Denmark and Sweden, the effects of the expansion of the European Union, temporary employment agencies, self-employment, occupational insurances and economic aspects of pension reform. He is since 2006 director of SULCIS (Stockholm Linnaeus Centre for Integration Studies).

Heather Roy, Eurodiaconia Heather Roy has been the Secretary General of Eurodiaconia since 2008. She is also President of the Social Platform and on the boards of Social Services Europe and the International Society for the Research and Study of Diaconia and Christian Social Practice. She has worked professionally and voluntarily in youth work including with young people who experience homelessness. Heather is also a Lay Reader in training (lay minister) in the Church of England.

Day 2

Plenary

9:00-10:30

From deserving poor to a human rights perspective

Magdalena Sepúlveda Carmona, UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights Dr. Magdalena Sepúlveda Carmona is the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. Sepulveda is also Visiting Fellow at the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). Before that she was Research Director at the International Council on Human Rights Policy in Geneva and Research Fellow at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights. Ms. Sepulveda is a lawyer who holds a Ph.D in International Human Rights Law from Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

Martin Hutsebaut, ETUI, European Trade Union Institute Hutsebaut has since 2005 been a member of the Directors' Committee of the ETUI-REHS (European Trade Union Institute for Research, Education and Health and Safety) where he holds the position of Secretary. At the ETUI-REHS, his main research interests are social security and taxation policies. He has a background at ETUC where he dealt with European company law, workers' representation rights in companies, and tax policies. Hutsebaut has also been a deputy member of the Belgian Parliament.

Moderator: Gunilla Hallonsten, Church of Sweden Rev Dr Gunilla Hallonsten heads the policy unit at Church of Sweden with responsibility for policy dialogue and international advocacy. Policy areas include gender, social protection, sexual and reproductive health, peace & reconciliation. Gunilla has focused her research on the sociology of religion, social cohesion, faith in civil society, gender, HIV and aids.

Thomas Hammarberg, Former Comissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe Thomas Hammarberg is UN Senior Expert on Human Rights in Transnistria and EU Special Adviser on Constitutional and Legal Reform and Human Rights in Georgia. Before that he was Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights 2006-2012 during which time he repeatedly raised concerns about the lack of respect for the rights of older people in European societies. Previously, he was Secretary General of Amnesty International, Swedish Save the Children and the Olof Palme International Centre.

Jimi Adesina, University of South Africa Jimi Adesina is Professor and the DST/NRF SARChI Chair in Social Policy at the University of South Africa, and Professorial Research Associate at the Nordic Africa Institute (Uppsala University, Sweden). He serves on the Boards of the UN Research Institute for Social Development (Geneva) and the Research Committee 19 (Poverty, Social Welfare and Social Policy) of the International Sociological Association. His research interests include Social Policy, Social Theory, and the Political Economy of Africa’s Development. He has published widely in these areas.

Christina Behrendt, International Labour Organization Dr. Christina Behrendt is Social Policy Specialist in the International Labour Office’s Social Protection Department in Geneva. Holding a Master Degree in Politics and Public Administration and a PhD in Social Policy from the University of Konstanz, Germany, she has widely published on various aspects of social security in both developed and developing country contexts.

Moderator: Ulrika Knutson

Plenary

11:00-12:30

Targeting vs. universalism: the issue of means-testing in social protection systems

Armando Barrientos, University of Manchester

Stephen Kidd, Development Pathways For the past four years, Dr. Stephen Kidd has worked as a consultant on social protection – including on old age pensions – mainly for AusAID and DFID. From 2001 to 2007 he was a Senior Social Development Adviser at DFID, leading its Social Protection and Equity and Rights policy teams; prior to this he worked on DFID’s China and Latin America programmes. On leaving DFID, he was engaged by HelpAge International as Director of Policy and Communications. He has worked on social development and social protection in over 25 countries across the world, across Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

Moderator: Annika Sundén

13.30 – 15.00 Parallel session Contributions by different stakeholders

13:30-15:00

A Low-income countries/fragile contexts

Marion Ouma, Africa Platform for Social Protection Marion Ouma is Programme Coordinator at the Africa Platform for Social Protection (APSP). She supports the participation and engagement of civil society and citizens in social protection. She also works with governments in the design and development of social protection policies and programmes in Africa. Prior to this she worked at HelpAge International, Africa Regional Development Centre.

Charlotte Petri Gornitzka, Director general of Sida Gornitzka is since February 2011 Director-General of Sida, working on behalf of the Swedish Government to contribute to making it possible for poor people to improve their living conditions. Since joining Sida, Ms Petri Gornitzka has taken steps to focus the agency’s mission and overall aid portfolio in order to increase the impact of Swedish development cooperation. Ms Gornitzka holds several Board positions, such as Swedfund International and the Swedish Research Council.

Mohammad Abdur Rahman, RDRS, Bangladesh Mohammad Abdur Rahman is working in RDRS Bangladesh as Project Development and Reporting Coordinator. Before joining in RDRS Bangladesh, he worked as the Head of BRAC Training Division (BTD), which is the largest training institute in Bangladesh. Rahman worked as an evaluator of Visionary Leadership Program (VLP), which was implemented in Ethiopia, India, Nigeria, and Sudan.

Stephen Barrett, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Uganda. Stephen Barrett is an independent social protection policy advisor with over 14 years’ experience working in international development. He currently serves as Team Leader on the Government of Uganda’s Expanding Social Protection Programme (ESPP) which is seeking to establish a national social pension as the first step in building a comprehensive social security system. Prior to this Mr Barrett worked on a number of social protection initiatives around the world including a study into the feasibility of establishing a universal social pension in Tanzania and the Hunger Safety Net Programme (HSNP) in Kenya.

Moderator: Stephen Kidd

13.30 – 15.00 Parallel session Contributions by different stakeholders

13:30-15:00

B Middle income countries/emerging economies

Maris de la Cruz, Asia-Europe Peoples Forum Maris dela Cruz is co-convener and co-facilitator of the Network for Transformative Social Protection consisting of key peoples organizations, NGOs, political groups in Asia advancing a campaign towards a life of dignity for all. She concurrently heads the Asian Secretariat of Asia-Europe Peoples’ Forum – an interregional network of progressive Asian and European social movements that engage ASEM and member governments on critical Asia-Europe issues including social security/social protection.

Nicholas Taylor, European Commission Nick Taylor is currently head of the Employment, Social Inclusion and Social Protection section in the European commission's Directorate General for Development (EuropeAid). From Sept 2008 to August 2011 he was head of development cooperation at the EU delegation in the Philippines, where the main focus of the programme was support for the government's health reform. Prior to joining the European Commission, he was head of the office of UNOCHA for Sudan from 2002-2003 and before that was aid secretary for DFID in Ethiopia from 1998-2002.

Isobel Frye, SPII, Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute, South Africa Isobel Frye joined the Unemployment Insurance Fund in 2012 as a mandated representative of the Community Constituency of NEDLAC. Isobel is a member of the Open Democracy Advice Centre, and a member of the Advisory Council for the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution. She also represents Community Constituency as the Convenor of the Public Finance and Monetary Policy Chamber. In 2007, she became the founding Director of SPII – Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute, a not for profit research and advocacy organization based in Johannesburg, and continues to hold this position.

Moderator: Gunilla Carlsson

13.30 – 15.00 Parallel session Contributions by different stakeholders

13:30-15:00

C Sverige och EU: Social trygghet för EU-migranter?

Iwan Giertz, S:ta Clara församling Iwan Giertz arbetar sedan 2013 som direktor för föreningen S:ta Clara kyrka i centrala Stockholm. S:ta Clara kyrka har ett omfattande diakonalt arbete med daglig matutdelning med 150-200 gäster, samtal med missbrukare och insatser bland prostituerade kvinnor. S:ta Clara besöker även fängelser och förmedlar fondmedel till hemlösa. Iwan Giertz har varit verksam som präst i Svenska kyrkan i över 30 år, både inom och utom landet.

Ellen Nygren, European Trade Union Confederation Ellen Nygren har arbetat på försäkringskassan och på LO samt PTK med socialförsäkringsfrågor och avtalsförsäkringar och avtalspensioner, som politiskt sakkunnig hos arbetlivsministern samt på LOs internationella enhet. Hon har varit ledamot i svenska ILO-kommittén och Europeiska Ekonomiska och Sociala Kommittén Arbetar nu hos Europafacket ETUC med bland annat "Social Protection", som innefattar pensionsfrågor.

Marika Markovits, Stockholms Stadsmission Marika Markovits är direktor för Stockholms stadsmission. Markovits är präst i Svenska kyrkan och har arbetat många år i förort med fokus på barn och unga. Hon är van att arbeta i samverkan med socialtjänst, skola, BUP, polis. Som präst har hon alltid arbetat med ett socialt samhällsperspektiv.

Moderator: Mats Wingborg Mats Wingborg är journalist och utredare och skriver om villkoren på den globala arbetsmarknaden och om fackföreningsrörelsen. Han har publicerat flera böcker och skrifter om konflikter i arbetslivet, migrantarbetare, osäkra arbeten etc.

15.30 – 16.45 Plenary

15:30-17:00

Social protection and the post 2015 agenda

Gunilla Carlsson, former Swedish Minister of development cooperation Gunilla Carlsson has served as Minister for International Development Cooperation from 2006 to 2013, and is a member of the Swedish Riksdag since 2002 as well as deputy chairman of the Moderate Party since 2003. Gunilla Carlsson has been a member of the UN high level panel of post 2015 agenda, who worked under the leadership of British Prime Minister David Cameron, President of Liberia Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. She has held a number of senior posts in the Swedish Government in the areas of foreign affairs, EU affairs and education and is a former member of the European Parliament.

Claire Courteille, International Trade Union Confederation Claire Courteille is director of the Equality Department at ITUC covering issues such as inequality/inequity, social protection, gender, migration. Before that she was an advisor to the Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV) and a member of the Dutch Economic and Social Committee. She has also worked abroad for different international organizations including UNHCR and OSCE.

Sten Rylander, Chairman of the Forum Syd Sten Rylander retired from the Swedish Foreign Ministry in March 2011 after a long career and several important assignments within Swedish development cooperation. Among other he has been the Head of the Sida Africa-desk, Ambassador in Tanzania and Zimbabwe. Dialogue Ambassador at the Ministry's Africa Department 2003-2006 with assignments including as a mediator in the Darfur conflict in Sudan. The last years he has been a guest researcher at Stellenbosch (STIAS) in South Africa, and in Dar es Salaam (REPOA), Tanzania.

Erik Lysén, Church of Sweden Erik Lysén is the Director of International Affairs at the Church of Sweden. Having worked at the Church Office since 2001, he has extensive experience of dealing with international affairs. During his work at the Church of Sweden, Erik has also been responsible for international advocacy work as the head of the policy unit. Erik holds a Master’s degree in International Economics from Gothenburg School of Economics, specializing in economic development.

Anna Brandt, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anna Brandt is Ambassador for the Post 2015 at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She is former Executive Directior at the Worlds Bank, for the Nordic-Baltic Constituency. Michael Cichon, International Council of Social Welfare

Moderator: Annika Söder, Executive Director of Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation Prior to joining the Foundation, Annika was a Senior Manager in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, responsible for external relations, partnerships and communications. Previously, she served in the Swedish Government offices as State Secretary for International Development Cooperation, spokesperson of the Foreign Ministry, and as foreign policy advisor to the prime minister and several foreign ministers.