Action Plan 2016 – 2021 Implementation of the National Social Security Strategy (NSSS).

This Action Plan 2016 – 2021 Implementation of the National Social Security Strategy (NSSS) is a multi-sectoral policy document. The National Social Security Strategy (NSSS) was formulated in 2015 with a view to tackling the triple problems of the poverty, inequality and marginalization. The NSSS itself provides a sketchy outline of major actions to be accomplished by different ministries. The present action plan builds upon those outlines to expand and spell out the time bound activities of different ministries, divisions and thematic clusters to achieve the mission of the NSSS.
The Action Plan promotes food insecurity. In the Action Plan, the strategic objective of the Ministry of Food is established: to streamline the food security type programmes. Key actions proposed in the Action Plan include: • Consolidate food transfer programmes; Coordinate with food stocking policy; Food distribution for disaster relief to continue as a disaster relief programme. To help eliminate malnutrition, the Action Plan also include such programmes as: Strengthen Immunization, Child Healthcare, Nutrition and Water and Sanitation Programmes; Orphan’s and School Meals Programmes; etc.
The core of the National Social Security Strategy (NSSS) is to implement a lifecycle based social security system combining both protective and promotional approaches with improved targeting, better design and more effective M&E system to prevent leakages and enhance outcome. The NSSS recognizes that a single ministry or division may implement a scheme, but others have a cross-cutting role. Based upon this idea, five thematic clusters are formed: Social Allowance, Food Security and Disaster Assistance, Social Insurance, Labour/Livelihood Interventions, and Human Development & Social Empowerment. The NSSS envisages that the Ministry of Social Welfare will assume the responsibility of leading lifecycle based social security. The mission of the Ministry of Social Welfare is set in the Action Plan: Creating a better life by providing social security, empowerment and development for the poor, vulnerable group of people and persons with disabilities. The strategic objective of the Ministry is to consolidate the major lifecycle programmes, making them more inclusive and efficient. The NSSS Action Plan further incorporates the activities to address gender issues in social security, including: Strengthen Support for Vulnerable Women; Introduce Vulnerable Women’s Benefit programme; Scale up SWAPNO (Strengthening Women's Ability for Productive New Opportunities) Project; Skill development programme for young men and women; etc. The programmes include:
The Plan promotes to increase the resilience of livelihoods to disasters. The strategic objective of social safety security programmes of the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief is set to be: to strengthen disaster relief and workfare programmes. Key actions include: Continue disaster relief programmes while improving disaster management system; Convert most of the workfare programmes from food to cash transfer where possible; etc.