One Hundred Years of Social Protection: The Rise of the Social Question in Brazil, India, China, and South Africa, 1920–2020

Abstract

AbstractThis chapter concludes the volume on social protection in Brazil, India, China, and South Africa, 1920–2020. The main findings are: (1) Historical evolution—the hundred years from 1920 to 2020 mark the century of the rise of social protection in the four countries. (2) The social construction of the social—all four countries, with the exception of India, have articulated social issues in a generalised way as a social question. (3) Political language—semantics of the social have spread in all four countries. (4) “Multireferentiality”—social protection policies were largely driven and shaped by “non-social” ideas and interests. (5) Transnational diffusion—external ideas have pervaded domestic social protection policies. The chapter closes by thoughts about the future of social protection in middle-income countries.