New Sources of Vulnerability and Risk in Post-strongSocialiststrong.pdfVIP

New Sources of Vulnerability and Risk in Post-Socialist Russia: Toward Social Protection Sergei Zelenev Russia’s transition to a market economy dramatically changed the country’s socio- economic landscape. The article discusses new demands on the welfare system that was inherited from the socialist era as well as new sources of risk and vulnerability that have emerged. The author argues that in the face of significant social costs and mounting social demands, the country needs a coherent and forward-looking system of social protection that can adapt to market realities. Keywords: Russia, welfare system reform, social risks and vulnerabilities, social protection The abandonment of central planning in Russia more than 10 years ago and the transition to a market-oriented economic system entailed drastic societal shifts with profound changes in the national welfare organization. The transi- tion placed new and heavy demands on the welfare system inherited from the socialist era. A highly centralized and rigid system of guaranteed employment ceased to exist. As a result, the long-running system of social security, “from cradle to grave,” disappeared. The old organization has been replaced by a hy- brid system of social protection, which is substantially smaller in coverage even though it carries a strong imprint of the previous era. The system coexists with new elements that came into being in reaction to emerging market realities. For instance, unemployment insurance had to be Sergei Zelenev is Chief, Social Integration Branch, Division for Social Policy and Development, DESA, UN Secretariat. Direct correspondence to Sergei Zelenev, DESA, UN Secretariat, 2 United Nations Plaza, DC201–1370, New York, New York 10017; tel.: (212) 963-4732; fax: (212) 963- 0111; zelenev@. Views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and should not be equated with any position that may be held by the UN Se