This collection of essays by the leading authorities in the field is a superb addition to the literature and provides a most reliable guideline to the public policy makers in East Asia and Oceania Region. Yukinobu Kitamura, Professor, Research Centre for Information and Statistics of Social Science, Hitotsubashi University
'The book has been published at the right time, during a period when inequality has been rising in the region. Growing inequality in terms of outcome measures such as income or wealth and opportunities has had a significant impact on vulnerable groups, including older people, women, children, and family. Social protection programs are designed to be inclusive and aim to reduce this inequality. The main strength of this book is its approach of comparing countries with similar levels of development and to link these comparisons with issues and challenges that exist in each country. [ ] I commend the authors for touching on the inclusiveness of the social protection systems in the Asian Pacific region, not only by discussing older people but also the coverage of specific programs that focus on women, children, and families.' Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, Volume 30 Issue 2