扩大阿拉伯地区非正规工人的社会保险

E/ESCWA/CL2.GPID/2026/Policy brief.1 Key messages Voluntary socialinsuranceenrolmentmodels remaininadequate,necessitatingsimplified andautomaticparticipation. The monotaxmodel offersa practicaland adaptableapproach toexpandingcoverage througha single flat-ratecontribution anda basic packageof short-termbenefits. Interoperablenationaldatabasescan facilitateautomaticidentification andpre-registrationof eligibleinformal workers,reducing costsand improvingtrust. Informalemploymentconstitutes nearly68 per cent ofthe workforcein the Arabregion, leavinga substantialshare of thepopulation withoutsocial insurancecoverage. Persistentstructural,administrativeand behaviouralbarriers continueto impede progressin expandingcoverage, despiterecent legalreforms. Introduction social protection. In Egypt, for example, new socialinsurance and health legislation, and the gradualexpansion of social assistance programmes, havelaid the groundwork for more inclusive coverageand reflect increasing political commitment toaddressing protection gaps. However, coverageagainst life-cycle risks including ill health, old age,maternity and work injury, remains limited or is insome cases declining due to structural andadministrative barriers. Closing this gap requiressimpler enrolment and contribution systems,reduced costs, and digital solutions that makecoverage the default rather than the exception. More than 67 per cent of the workforce in the Arabregion is informally employed,1without stablecontracts, predictable incomes, or access to socialinsurance. Although these workers contributesignificantly to local economies, they remain largelyexcluded from protection systems. In 2024, only35.8 per cent of households in North Africa and30 per cent in Arab States2benefited from any form ofsocial protection, whether through social insurance orsocial assistance, leaving millions without coverage.3 Recent reforms across the region have introducedlegal frameworks that could support universal The reality of informality in the Arab region Figure 1.Labour force participation rate in the Arab region, by sex, 2024, ILO modelled estimates (Percentage) Informal employment remains the predominantform of work in the region. While informalityaffects both men and women, its patterns differsignificantly. Men’s labour force participation is generally high, depending on the national context.Most young men enter the labour market throughinformal employment without social insurancecoverage. Women’s participation, by contrast, as construction, agriculture and transport. In theArab States, informal employment reaches nearly96.1 per cent in agriculture (91.9 per cent in NorthAfrica) and exceeds 76.9 per cent in construction(85.7 per cent in North Africa).4Although thesesectors employ millions of workers, they makelimited contributions to social insurance, mainlydue to irregular earnings and the widespreadnon-registration of workers. Consequently,informal workers, who face some of the highestlevels of risk, are also the least likely to benefitfrom social protection. averages only around 20 per cent and isconcentrated in public administration, educationand health sectors, with high rates of socialinsurance compliance. Informality declines with age but remainswidespread: among men, it drops fromapproximately 85 per cent of young workers to68 per cent of workers aged 25 and older; amongwomen, it drops from 79 to 61 per cent. Thesedifferences reflect sectoral dynamics, with menoverrepresented in highly informal sectors such Social insurance coverage for informal workersremains limited In Egypt, for example, coverage among privatesector workers outside formal establishmentsremains extremely limited. The share of suchworkers with permanent employment barelyexceeds one in four, and only about 10 per cent arecovered by social insurance. Just 0.5 per cent havea legal employment contract, and only 3 per cent While contributory schemes can help narrowprotection gaps, their role remainssignificantly constrained across countries inthe Arab region, where informal employmentis widespread, access to formal systems islimited and private-sector formal employmentis often scarce. At the same time, voluntary enrolment entailsfinancial risks. When enrolment is largely limitedto higher-risk individuals while higher-incomeworkers remain outside the system, contributionrevenues become insufficient to sustainbenefits. Such adverse selection undermines thefinancial sustainability of social insuranceschemes and hinders their equitable expansion. benefit from health insurance, underscoring thelimited reach of contributory schemes for workersoutside establishments and the continuedprevalence of precarious employment conditions.In such context, non-contributory social protectionand social assistance account for a larger share oftotal coverage. This imbalance reflects deep structural andbehavioural constraints that hinder participation incontributory schemes, and point to the ma