Transnational Social Protection: Moving Forward the Agenda

• In Event: 4456 - Migration Protections, and Justice

Abstract

The idea that social rights are something we are eligible for based on where we live or where we are citizens is out-of-date, not only for those who cross borders but also for those who don’t. People protect themselves and their families transnationally—using formal and informal resources in the countries that they come from and where they settle. We need to understand this transformation in social welfare as we know it, identify who the new winners and losers are, and train a next generation or policymakers, service providers, and researchers to respond to these changes in the social contract between state and citizen. The European Union has developed its own version of transnational social protection for its members and for non-members who live within its borders. This paper looks beyond Europe to understand how migrants in countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, where there are also instruments of regional governance in place, protect and provide for themselves across borders.

Authors

• Peggy Levitt, Wellesley College

• Erica Dobbs, Swarthmore College

• Ruxandra Paul, University of Massachusetts-Amherst