In recent decades there have been important advances in methodologies , tools and quality of information for the social impact assessment of social policies . To the extent that countries have made progress in making improvements in operational management , has also been achieved incorporating assessments as a cornerstone of the development of social policies and programs . So , today you can have valuable information regarding the impact of various policies on such important dimensions such as poverty, inequality and health status , among others. You can also obtain information on the redistributive impact of social policy , which is achieved by analyzing the size and characteristics of the target population of social investment made ??.
Nevertheless , little is known about the economic impact of social policy . As that is not one of its specific objectives , has not been evaluated . Only in recent years some researchers have begun to delve into the estimation of this impact , particularly in relation to conditional cash transfer programs . The analysis is based on the idea that these programs provide resources to households that are intended for consumption and that can affect the market , as they can have an impact on the productive sector or workplace .
This paper seeks to advance this relationship between social policy and the economy, the resources involved in funding and the economic impact it generates , both at micro and macro. It also attempts a discussion on existing methodological alternatives to achieve measure these impacts in the region .
The conceptual and methodological discussion presented here is generally valid for all social policy , however that the document is a more detailed analysis for the case of income transfer programs currently widespread in the region.