Paper short abstract:

This paper analyses the interactions between policy relevant actors at the local level as a way to understand the deep politics of social protection. Using the case of social cash transfers in Zambia, it argues that SCTs have the potential to stimulate important changes in the local welfare regime.

Paper long abstract:

Recent years have witnessed the nationwide scale-up of social protection interventions in many developing countries. This trend has been accompanied by an increasing academic interest in the politics of social protection. However, most existing and emerging studies assume a top-town view on the policy process and focus on the interactions of international and national decision-makers in shaping social protection policies. Yet we know that policies are negotiated and re-negotiated by multiple actors at different levels of governance and at different times of the policy process (Lipsky, 1980; Sabatier, 2007). This means that the 'real' policy outcomes hinge on the 'final' negotiations of the shape of the policy, namely the negotiations between the actors at the bottom. Therefore, this paper focuses on the interactions between policy relevant actors at the bottom as a way to comprehend the deep politics and the transformative potential of social protection.

The paper analyses how power relations have changed at the local level following the implementation of Social Cash Transfers in rural Zambia. Specifically, it looks at how poor people's perceptions and voices are influenced and mediated by more powerful actors. The answers will be based on the analysis of over 30 key informant interviews with policy-relevant actors at the bottom level as well as a purposeful analysis of relevant secondary data. The paper concludes that the implementation of SCTs in rural Zambia has stimulated important changes in the local welfare regime and thus in the relationships of poor people.