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Another approach to the problem of defining ultimate social goals consists of accepting those considered desirable by political decision makers. This, however, still leaves us with the task of determining whether progress is being made on the way towards the attainment
of such social objectives. The solution will be difficult to find because the problem of defining the notion of social progress demands considerable knowledge about people and the way they wish to live in society. This will require again a great deal of patient and laborious research which will be costly both in human and material resources.
III.
PROBLEMS OF SOCIAL SECURITY PLANNING
IN MARKET ECONOMY COUNTRIES
In the first chapter of this paper we have examined a number of reasons which may account for the historical delay in planning for the social aspects of development. It is against this background that we must consider the late emergence of social security planning, further complicated by certain features peculiar to this social institution.
The first thing to note is the diversity of concepts and institutional forms cf social security which are to be found in different countries of the world. This diversity will largely be explained by historical reasons, i.e. by the fact that different societies tend to find their own solution to the essential task assigned to social security, namely that of providing for persons who, through no fault of their own, become victims of a social accident or find themselves in ત socially disadvantaged position. This is no doubt one of the natural functions of society as а biological entity and one of its primary duties as an ethical entity; consequently, the institutional answer whereby this challenge is met reflects to a great extent the national character of each society.
The above considerations will also explain the strong political element in social security development, determined by the importance of the institution in the life of all citizens. This political aspect further contributed to the diversity of institutional structures and to the complexity of social security provisions; for reasons of political expediency and as a result of various political pressures, governments have often been unwilling to undertake major reforms of the whole system and have kept adding new measures to the sometimes incoherent mcsaic of existing provisions.
The lack of unity in institutional structure and benefit pattern is further aggravated by the diversity of financial resources which are used to meet social security expenditures. This a spect of the institution only reinforced the traditional hesitancy of economists to include its operations in the national accounts. The economic effects of social security provisions as a measure of the redistribution of income were recognised, but no one has ever succeeded in cal- culating them with any precision. In some ways, social security has, for many years, been considered by a good many economists as a kind of cancerous growth in the body of society, which did not fit into the established pattern of economic exchanges.
This is no doubt why, in spite of the relatively well-defined institutional frontiers and advanced accounting and projection techniques developed by social security actuaries and statisticians, the social security sector entered economic planning only in recent years, when its role in societal development was duly recognised.
A.
1.
Basic requirements and strategy of social security planning in industrialised countries
Determination of social functions and general objectives of social security
As we have already explained, the determination of social gcals, i.e. the ultimate objectives of planning, is an essential part of any planning effort relating to social aspects of development. If it is to be at all meaningful, the planning procedure cannot but start with replies to fundamental questions, such as: Why do we wish to promote social security? What function has social security to fulfil in our society? Where do we go in building up the existing social security system and what do we expect from it?
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