The Fundamental Contribution of  ICT to Comprehensive Social Security

 

 Social security institutions have always been at the forefront of information and communication technology (ICT) application. In addition, they are increasingly asked to extend large-scale programmes and provide comprehensive coverage to vulnerable population groups, including migrant workers, which require complex administrative tools, according to the Secretary General in his opening remarks at the 13th International Conference on Information and Communication Technology in Social Security, which took place in Brasilia, Brazil from 17 to 20 April. Hosted by the Social Security Information and Technology Enterprise of Brazil, Dataprev, over 300 professionals from more than 70 countries convened to discuss the strategic impact of ICT in the implementation of social security systems.

Mr Carlos Eduardo Gabas of Brazil’s Ministry of Social Insurance chaired the first session, in which he addressed the social impact of large-scale and integrated systems and how ICT constitutes a key enabler for implementing these programmes. Keynote speeches in which specific cases of coverage extension in Brazil through ICT use were presented. A panel made up of international organizations (ILO, World Bank, ISSA) presented their visions. That afternoon, Mr Fernando Pazos, Administrative Manager of Derrama Magisterial in Peru, moderated a panel in which case studies from Cape Verde, Australia, the European Commission and the Ibero-American Social Security Organization further demonstrated this point.

Mr Rodrigo Assumpção, President of Dataprev, moderated the session on key technologies, addressing the issues of balancing interoperability and data security and Privacy. A lively debate on these topics followed the keynote speeches, including the views of panellists from Norway, South Africa and the World Bank. This was followed by an ICT industry perspective, chaired by Mr Guillermo Sáez-Llorens from Panama’s Social Insurance Fund, in which representatives from IBM, Accenture, Oracle and SAP participated. Mr Mauro Hauschild, President of the National Social Security Institute in Brazil, moderated the session on the key factors in ICT with a panel comprising representatives from Ghana, Germany and Uruguay.

On the final day of the conference, Mr Oktay Ibrahimov, of the State Social Protection Fund in Azerbaijan and Vice-Chairperson of the ISSA Technical Commission on Information and Communication Technology (TC-ICT), moderated the session on ISSA ICT products and services. Mr Francisco Delgado Azuara of Spain’s National Social Security Institute and Vice-Chairperson of the TC-ICT presented the ISSA Guidelines on ICT and summarized the ISSA’s work in this area. Concerning new products and services, Mr. Rodrigo Assumpção referred to the Brazilian Public Software Portal. The Portal was created in April 2007 as a means to share software and provide solutions that may be useful to different agencies.Mr Assumpção encouraged participants to consult the site.

In his concluding remarks, Mr Konkolewsky highlighted ICT’s fundamental role in social security, stressing that the implementation of innovative and extensive social programmes would not be feasible without ICT. In closing he reminded participants of the ISSA’s role in supporting member organizations through knowledge transfer and by practical tools. 

SOURCES : ISSA, 21 APRIL 2012