The Diploma for Social Protection Analysts is a new initiative in the field of social protection capacity strengthening. Its central objective is to support the improvement in analytical aspects of the design, financial planning and governance of national social protection systems, through the training of quantitative specialists.

The Diploma is composed of the social protection courses (offered online and face-to-face) listed here below. Participants need to complete three of the four qualified courses within a 5-year period and a capstone project in order to earn the “Social Protection Analysts” recognition.

Participants are officials committed to advance social protection through strong commitment and sound quantitative skills who normally already have a number of years of work experience in social protection. They should hold bachelor or advanced degrees and have a strong quantitative background in public administration, economics, political science, social science, finance, actuarial studies, mathematics, statistics or related fields.

On achieving the Diploma for Social Protection Analysts recognition, successful candidates will:

• Have gained cutting edge quantitative skills in core areas of social protection analysis;
• Be able to demonstrate the achievement through a recognised certification from the ITCILO; and
• Be part of a growing network of social protection analysts to serve as an ongoing platform for exchange.

During each of the three chosen courses, participants are immersed in a rich, intensive and flexible online learning programme, which guarantees a steep learning curve in an international environment of knowledge exchange. It also provides a unique opportunity for networking with a large pool of social protection experts.

For each eligible course, the assessment process establishes whether participants have a full grasp of the skills and concepts included, resulting in a course-specific Certificate of Achievement issued by the ITCILO. To earn the Diploma participants need to complete three courses and then undertake a capstone assessment demonstrating the consolidated learning of the courses combined. The capstone assessment consists of a written assignment which uses analytical approaches from the three completed courses to develop policy recommendations for a specific country context.

The Centre is able to draw on the expertise of the ILO, which is rooted in 100 years of standard setting and technical support on social protection. This experience has resulted in a deep understanding of how social protection systems can become effective and sustainable in the long term, and a tried and tested set of tools and models which can be adapted to national contexts. The ILO’s leading role in international cooperation on social protection also means the centre is able to draw on a wide network of expertise within the UN system, academia and beyond.