KIRIBATI

Social protection in Kiribati

Kiribati is an island country of 32 islands dispersed over 3.5 million kilometres of ocean. With a population of approximately 132,000 people, Kiribati has some social protection schemes in place.

Read below to see which of these life-cycle risks Kiribati is addressing and how.

EARLY CHILDHOOD

  • Poor access to antenatal and post natal care
  • Unsafe birth
  • Poor access to immunisation
  • Stunting, malnutrition and hunger
  • Reduced cognitive development

SCHOOL AGE

  • Malnutrition
  • Unable to access or stay in school
  • Child labour
  • Commercial and sexual exploitation and abuse
  • Loss of parents or carers

YOUTH

  • Inadequate skills
  • Inability to access training
  • Unemployment and underemployment
  • Gender discrimination
  • Commercial and sexual exploitation and abuse
  • Domestic violence
  • Alienation

WORKING AGE

  • Unemployment and underemployment
  • Cost of children
  • Lack of childcare
  • Care of parents
  • Debt
  • Gender discrimination
  • Commercial and sexual exploitation and abuse
  • Domestic violence

OLD AGE

  • Increasing frailty and disability
  • Inability to work
  • Lack of family care
  • Elder abuse
Leading to the following solutions:

WORKING AGE

  • Support for the unemployed (a cash transfer program created after the COVID-19 pandemic)

OLD AGE

  • Senior Citizens Benefit, a universal non-contributory pension (70 years and older)
  • Provident Fund old age benefit for formal workers

Kiribati has a Disability Support Allowance, which is a universal disability benefit for people with a disability.