Invitation side event From “Unaffordability” to Rights: Claiming Fiscal Space for Universal Social Security

The Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors, together with several partners, is co-organizing the side event From “Unaffordability” to Rights: Claiming Fiscal Space for Universal Social Security. The event will take place at the Civil Society Policy Forum (CSPF), held during the 2026 Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank Group (WBG) that will take place from 14 to 17 April 2026 in a hybrid format.

• Date: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
• Time: 11:00am–12:30pm (Washington, DC / EDT) - Check the local time here.
• Location: IMF HQ2-03B-768B (1900 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC)
• Online: https://imf.zoom.us/j/96523144709?pwd=VE4gbr5Z7COeZOBCJE65GB69Vywbx5.1

The session will bring together new research and regional perspectives to examine how narratives around “affordability” shape fiscal choices, and to explore pathways toward universal, rights-aligned social security systems.

Speakers: Jamele Rigolini (World Bank), Stephen Kidd (Development Pathways), Angella Kasule Nabwowe (ISER Uganda), Diala Ahwach (Arab Reform Initiative), Matti Kohonen (Financial Transparency Coalition, tbc).

Moderator: Lena Simet (Human Rights Watch).

Co-organized by: Act Church of Sweden, Arab Reform Initiative (ARI), ISER Uganda, Human Rights Watch, Bretton Woods Project, Global Coalition for Social Protection Floors (GCSPF), International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Global Call to Action Against Poverty (GCAP), The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP), Institute for Economic Justice (IEJ).