Social Policy Unit

What is the Social Policy Unit and what are its goals?

The Social Policy Unit (SPU) came into action with the Georgian Community Mobilization Initiative funded by USAID for four years, beginning in 2000. The SPU mission statement has led its activities over the last two years: “ Informed citizenry taking initiative to promote social development in a collaborative and strategic way with government, NGOs and other civil society groups ”. A Social Policy Advisor selected by Management Systems International (USA) works with the policy unit, consolidating the efforts of GCMI to initiate both community and national-level social policy, in collaboration with Mercy Corps International and CARE International. The Horizonti Foundation offices in Tbilisi are home to the Social Policy Unit. Four staff members hired by Horizonti collaborate in Tbilisi and others live and work in several regions of Georgia, including Kakheti,, Shida Kartli, Samskhe-Javakheti, Imereti, Samegrelo and Guria.

The SPU works closely with GCMI partners and with a wide range of other local and national NGOs, community groups and Government agencies. Three factors that we believe will significantly contribute to integration of efforts to initiate adapted and coherent social policies in Georgia include 1) promoting credibility by building on previous achievements within the country, 2) introducing new tools to promote good social policy with Georgian and other appropriate policy-makers, and 3) increase visibility and public participation.

I. Social Policy: Basic concepts

• plan
• strategy
• guiding principle
• course of action
• guidelines
• procedure
• rule

Thus policy in the social sphere includes government plans, rules and guidelines, but also citizens' initiatives to promote courses of action and strategies, especially when a plan to promote local needs ( advocacy ) is developed by citizen groups.

Good social policy should promote individual and social well-being:

• needs are "what people must have", and social policy should promote a course of action to make people feel physically and psychologically satisfied
• interests are "what people believe are good for them"
• wants are "what people choose for themselves"

Social policy should address needs, interests and wants of the local groups and communities. Individual and social well being should coincide for a large part with the well-being of the group, community or nation. Outlined below are some of the basic issues that Social Policy makers are confronted with.

Often evoked when speaking of Social Policy is the term poverty. Although there is no general agreement on what poverty is, we can say it is "hardship that is unacceptable" and refers to:

• material conditions - a lack of goods and services, deprivation, or a low standard of living
• economic position - low income, limited resources
• social position - inequality of treatment, low social class, unequal access to goods, dependency or social exclusion

Levels of poverty include:

• Absolute poverty , or not having the minimum standard needed to survive, including food, clean environment, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education and information. Poverty does not only depend on income or revenue but also on access to social services.
• Relative poverty, or comparing individuals or groups of people with others in society. This means certain groups are relatively poor when others have normal living conditions, services, food and activities and the poor groups do not.

Social exclusion is also related to Social Policy since some people are excluded from networks that support most members of the society. These networks include family, friends, community and employment. Examples are ex-prisoners, former orphans, homeless people, people with AIDS or drug-users, people with learning disabilities or psychiatric patients. Social exclusion often carries a stigma and social protection is made difficult for this reason. Women and girls are often excluded from certain activities and services, sometimes through their traditional roles.

The need for economic survival raises the issue of unemployment , an enormous challenge for social policy. Exclusion from the labor market increases risks of social exclusion, increases risks of homelessness, drug abuse, mental illness and a spiral of poverty that in turn increases violence and criminal activities in the community.

Children's needs are often defined as the same as everyone else's: material security, social contact and personal development. However, these needs are more intensely experienced by the growing child whose adult personalities will depend on how well these needs were met when the person was too young to take responsibility for herself/himself. Children are often seen as property of the family, and bear physical and mental abuse in greater quantities than adults, during a period of life when they most need protection. In addition to protection they need information/education to be able to feel satisfaction as a child and to grow into healthy and participating members of society.

Special needs such as learning and physical disabilities lead to greater dependency on good social policy. These are some of the greatest challenges to communities that live outside of a well-functioning social policy system. Community psychiatric support should function, as well as social support to avoid social exclusion for the mentally ill, access to sufficient housing and care and even income or employment possibilities. Support to those with mental or physical disabilities would include helping them find some autonomy and independence, giving them the same choices and opportunities as everyone else ( inclusive education and employment policies ) and accepting and valuing what people with learning disabilities can do.