Public social spending

A wide range of people and social institutions provide social support to those in need through a variety of means. Much of this support takes the form of social expenditure, which comprises both financial support and "in-kind" provision of goods and services. To be included in social spending, benefits have to address one or more contingences, such as low-income, old-age, unemployment and disability. The indicator of social spending used for cross-country comparisons is public spending as a share of Net National Income (NNI).