Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Introduction; 2. The role of historical contexts in shaping social policy in the global South; PART II Institutions and actors; 3. The role of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund inpoverty reduction: limits of policy change; 4. Building the welfare mix or sidelining the state? Non-governmental organizations in developing countries as social policy actors; 5. The informal economy: dilemmas and policy responses. 6. Addressing the failings of public health systems: should the private sector be an instrument of choice?PART III Instruments and mechanisms; 7. Social security: risks, needs and protection; 8. The implications of conditionality in social assistance programmes; 9. Work and welfare in the global South: public works programmes as an instrument of social policy; 10. The social entrepreneurship-social policy nexus in developing countries; PART IV Scenarios and trajectories; 11. Globalization and social policy in developing countries. 12. South-South cooperation: a new paradigm for global social policy?13. Conclusion: towards the analysis of social policy in a developing world; Index.

There is increasing interest in the significance of social policy in the management of welfare and risk in the developing world. This volume provides a critical analysis of the challenges and opportunities facing social protection systems in the global south, and examines current strategies for addressing poverty and welfare needs in the region. In particular, the text explores the extent to which the analytic models and concepts for the study of social policy in the industrialised North are relevant in a developing country context. The volume analyses the various institutions, actors, instrum.