Capturing Best Practices in Social Policy
The MENA social policy network organised by the University of Bath team will launch a new series of short policy papers called Policy Innovation Case Studies, or PICS.
Starting in 2019, PICS will offer analytical insights into the social policy-making process by discussing social policy innovations across the MENA region. The aim is to highlight a thought-provoking example of problem-solving or policy action that advances social welfare or social justice in some way. PICS can also highlight ways in which policy failure has occurred and how lessons might be extracted to improve problem-solving.
PICS will follow basic principles of policy analysis, as such they will highlight matters such as political agency, drivers of policy change, and contextual and structural factors. They will use effectiveness, inclusiveness and efficiency as benchmarks for success. The series will explore advances in social welfare, empowerment or social cohesion broadly defined.
Each case study will be translated into Arabic and posted online where it can be easily accessed by policy practitioners, researchers and teachers. The University of Bath team will serve as editor of the PICS series, coordinating their publication and dissemination.
If you are interested in writing a Policy Innovation Case Study, please contact Rana Jawad or email the network coordinators at MENASP_network@bath.ac.uk.
Tackling tough problems
During its first year (2019), the series will present case studies dealing with some of the most pressing issues in the region, including youth unemployment, the humanitarian response to conflict-stricken populations, and the reform of social assistance and safety nets. We will explore these themes across a broad range of countries in the region The following PICS* are scheduled for release in 2019:
- Basic services and social policy challenge: Refugees and humanitarian needs for Lebanon and Jordan, by Nasser Yassin
- Social assistance and safety nets for Egypt and Morocco, by Rana Jawad and Bethany Shockley
- Family policy in Qatar, by Anis Ben Brik
- Social accountability and local government in Morocco, by Sylvia Bergh