Introduction / Definition:
Social Welfare Policy can be defined as a clearly articulated statement of the government describing a course of action/s to be implemented in order to achieve set goals and objectives as far as social welfare is concerned. The aim of the Government is to build a socially cohesive, a thriving community through integrated social and economic policies which seek to strengthen community relations, minimize social tensions, strengthen families, and eradicate poverty.
The long term objectives of the government is to establish a policy and institutional framework which will promote the rights of poorer and more vulnerable members of society, enhance their livelihood opportunities and increase their access to social services. Therefore the Government needs to formulate community development and social welfare policy guidelines particularly as regards issues affecting children, juveniles, the elderly, the disabled, the poor families and gender. (The Development Planning Unit)
Social policy is the study of the welfare state, and the range of responses to social need. However, in United States politics, social policies are those which regulate and govern human behavior in areas such as sexuality and general morality. Social policies are in contrast to other, more traditional forms of political policy, such as foreign policy and economic policy.
In the modern-day, social policies usually deal with the following issues:
- abortion, and the regulation of its practice
- the legal status of euthanasia
- homosexuality and the rights of gay couples
- the rules surrounding issues of marriage, divorce, and adoption
Religion and the religious beliefs of politicians often heavily inspire social policy. Poltical conservatives as a whole generally favor a more traditionalist approach to social policy than political liberals.
In Europe and Canada, social policy usually means something entirely different and refers to policies affecting the social conditions under which people........
