Essays on Evaluation of Social Protection Programmes in Ethiopia

Recognizing the interplay between different shocks, a recent trend in Ethiopia’s social protection landscape has been to 'bundle' various schemes and to go beyond the 'protection' motive of such schemes to try and sustainably enhance household resilience to shocks. Emblematic of this trend are the two flagship programs - the Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) established in 2005, and the pilot Community Based Health Insurance (CBHI) scheme launched in 2011.

In her research, Zemzem Shigute Shuka explores these programmes and their role in protecting rural households from vulnerability and exposure to different types of shocks.

Her thesis consists of four essays. The first two examine interactions between the two programmes while the last two essays analyze whether these programmes are able to deliver quality rural infrastructure assets. That is, the first two essays deal with the 'bundling' theme while essays 3 and 4 focus on going 'beyond social protection'. 

Overall, her thesis shows that at the very least, in Ethiopia, 'bundling' of social protection schemes and community participation are scheme design factors that are worth promoting.

Chair

Professor Peter Knorringa

Doctoral dissertation supervisor

Professor Arjun Bedi

Co-supervisor

Dr Matthias Rieger

Members of the Full Doctoral Committee

Professor Tassew Woldehanna Kahsay, Addis Ababa University

Professor Bereket Kebede, University of East Anglia

Professor Bart Criel, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp

Professor Marleen Dekker, Leiden University

Professor Mansoob Murshed

Dr Natasha Wagner

The ceremony will be followed by a reception in the Atrium of the ISS. Professors are invited to join the academic procession