Transformative social policy and innovation in developing countries

Social policy is today receiving greater attention in the field of development studies. Much emphasis is placed on the important issues of reproduction, redistribution and social protection. However, in the context of development, one must add to these concerns the vital issue of production. This article argues that social policy can be innovation-enhancing, through its effects on human capital and skill formation; its capacity to alleviate risk and uncertainty by underpinning the social pacts necessary for managing the contractual nature of labour markets; its incorporation of labour into the saving-investment regime and inducement of long-term perspectives in the financial sector; and its contribution to political stability. These roles underscore the transformative role of social policy that is often overlooked. The recognition of these roles is quite recent in the case of developed countries and much more research is required, with special attention to the problems of catching up.