CC BY
0ON THE ISSUE OF SCIENTIFIC AND THEORETICAL UNDERSTANDING OF THE ESSENCE OF THE WELFARE STATE
d https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo. 11628076
Abdullakhanova Gulbahor Sattarovna
- Candidate of Philosophical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of "Humanitarian sciences" Tashkent State Economic University E-mail: gulbakhor@yandex.ru Tel: +998 94 6428569
ABSTRACT
The article is devoted to the description of the concept of a welfare state as one of the foundations of the constitutional system of a modern democratic legal state. The article touches on various approaches to defining the concept of a welfare state, reveals approaches to considering this concept and some basic elements, without taking into account the interaction of which it is impossible to obtain a basic understanding of the welfare state. The author also drew attention to the features of the formation of a welfare state in New Uzbekistan.
Key words: welfare state, Constitution of Uzbekistan (New edition), rights, social security, social justice.
INTRODUCTION
The welfare state is a natural stage in the evolutionary development of state forms of social structure. We can safely say that the welfare state at the present stage of the historical development of mankind is the highest achievement of civilization in the field of state building and the implementation of humanistic universal values, the most appropriate way to combine the principles of freedom and legality in order to ensure the well-being of the individual and the prosperity of society as a whole. Thus, in his speech at the video conference meeting, the President of Uzbekistan Mirziyoyev Sh.M. emphasized that "...In accordance with Article 1 of the Constitution of our country, Uzbekistan is a welfare state." [2]
The very concept of "welfare state" has long been used in the world community. It was first proposed in the mid-19th century by Lawrence von Stein, a German Hegelian philosopher, jurist, historian and economist. It was he who had scientific priority in the development of the first theoretical concept of a welfare state,
containing innovative views for its time on the possibilities and means of public policy. He believed that the idea of the state was to restore equality and freedom, to raise the poor to the level of the rich and powerful, the state "carries out the economic and social development of all its members, for the development of one is the condition and result of the other." [6]
The welfare state is a model whose general principles (mixed economy, participation in solving social problems, etc.) are implemented in most economically developed countries.
LITERATURE REVIEW
In the scientific literature exploring theoretical approaches to the study of this concept, there is no absolutely universal and accurate definition of the concept of a welfare state. The main reasons for this are that this characteristic of the state arises, among other things, from sources other than the activities of the state, and there are different models of service delivery available to citizens. Some such services may be government-funded but not directly provided by the government, and some may be produced and provided free of charge by the public sector. Thus, although it is impossible to clearly define the scope of the concept of a welfare state, the term is used in theory to refer to government activities in four broad areas: the provision of cash benefits, health care, education, as well as food and housing and other social services. [7, 3]
In the scientific literature, economic, political and ideological approaches to considering this concept are distinguished. However, within the framework of all these approaches, the existence of some basic elements is assumed, without taking into account the interaction of which it is impossible to obtain a basic understanding of the social state. These elements include the state itself (its public authorities), the market and society. [9, 3]
For example, Kauffman F.-K. defines the welfare state as the institutional result of society's attribution of legal and, accordingly, formal and explicit responsibility for the basic well-being of all its members. Such a state arises when society, or the decision-making part of it, becomes convinced that the welfare of the individual is too important to be ensured by custom or informal agreement and private understanding, and accordingly should become the concern of the state. [5, 197]
According to the views of Nishevich Yu., a welfare state is a state whose activities are aimed at the practical harmonization of individual rights and social justice in everyday life. The main task of such a state is to provide all citizens with state guarantees approximately equal opportunities for self-realization. The welfare state also guarantees each citizen minimally adequate living conditions and an
adequate level of social security. Social security in this case is understood as protection from natural, man-made, social and economic changes and disasters, as well as providing the opportunity to participate in government, regardless of the financial situation of members of the population and their social status. As Yu. Nishevich notes, such an opportunity to participate in the implementation of governance is an integral part of social justice in its modern legal and political interpretation. [8, 35]
Tavip M. notes that within any approach to analyzing the concept of a welfare state, as a rule, the role of the state in ensuring social equality and justice is positioned in accordance with the following three principles:
- resolving problems and preventing consequences harmful to a market economy, especially those , which have a more negative impact on entities that have fewer economic and social opportunities;
- ensuring the distribution of benefits among everyone fairly and evenly;
- promoting social well-being. [9, 3-4]
Based on these three principles, the activities of the welfare state are aimed at achieving the following main goals: ensuring economic growth, broad employment opportunities, price stability, development, the spread of social insurance systems and improving working conditions, capital distribution, general welfare and the promotion of various social and economic interests. [9, 4]
Research methods. Based on the specifics of this topic, certain research methods were used. The research method was chosen as the main one. Comparative and systematic analysis of scientific literature on this topic, inductive and deductive methods in their unity when summarizing materials were also used.
Analysis and results. The welfare state, in its narrowest sense, carries out its activities by paying benefits to the population, providing services to society and providing solutions to issues related to housing. In a broad sense, the welfare state implements not only a significantly larger number of programs aimed directly at supporting the population, but also measures aimed at managing and organizing the economy, including issues related to employment, and also carries out comprehensive management of the macroeconomy. [10, 5-6] The most typical definition of the concept of a social state today is one according to which a social state is a system in which public authorities assume primary responsibility for ensuring the social and economic security of the population, as a rule, through the implementation of complexes of various types of measures (insurance in case of unemployment,
payment of old-age pensions, etc.). [3, 4] Obviously, this definition combines three different important aspects:
- firstly, this is the political intention of the state to assume social and economic responsibility for the population;
- secondly, it is a method of achieving goals, i.e. implementation of specific specified measures;
- thirdly, this is the extension of this concept of a welfare state to the entire social system in general, which is characterized by such approaches. [3, 4-5]
The welfare state is a model whose general principles (mixed economy, participation in solving social problems, etc.) are implemented today in most economically developed countries. For example, these are Great Britain, France, Sweden, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Greece, Japan, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the USA.
Uzbekistan has also embarked on the path of building a welfare state. At the proposal of the President of Uzbekistan Sh.M. Mirziyoyev, the principle "New Uzbekistan is a welfare state" is enshrined in the Constitution (New Edition) as a constitutional norm. According to the President, the welfare state provides for the provision of housing to those in need and the minimum amount of consumer goods necessary for life. For the decent life for an individual and his family requires wages, employment, safe working conditions and poverty reduction. For example, the Constitution of Uzbekistan (New Edition) establishes the basic guarantees for the implementation of the state's social policy:
"- Every person has the right to privacy, personal and family secrets, protection of his honor and dignity (Article 31);
- Everyone has the right to decent work, to free choice of profession and type of activity, favorable working conditions that meet safety and hygiene requirements, to fair remuneration for work without any discrimination and not lower than the established minimum wage, as well as protection from unemployment in the manner prescribed by law (Article 42);
- Everyone has the right to rest (Article 45);
- Everyone has the right to health protection and qualified medical care (Article
48);
- Everyone has the right to education (Article 50);
- Everyone is guaranteed freedom of scientific, technical and artistic creativity, the right to enjoy cultural achievements (Article 53)
- and etc." [1]
The goals of the welfare state can be grouped into four main categories:
1. maintaining standard of living,
2. reducing inequality,
3. avoidance of excessive expenses intended for this purpose;
4. curbing behavior that contributes to moral hazard and adverse selection. [7, 3]
According to Ronald J. Daniels and Michael J. Trebilcock, a welfare state
strives to achieve the following main goals:
- regulation of public morality
- strengthening social solidarity;
- insurance of individual risks;
- assistance in ensuring economic stability;
- ensuring fair distribution of resources. [4, 8]
The concept of the welfare state presupposes the idea of the state as a constitutionally organized network of political institutions endowed with the ability to influence the process of welfare production in accordance with institutional guidelines. [5, 197]
We should also distinguish between two aspects of the welfare state: the welfare state as a range of social services or institutions and the welfare state as a model of political activity based on normative orientations related to ensuring the achievement of well-being. [3, 5]
There are specific criteria for a welfare state:
- level of guarantee of social rights and freedoms of man and citizen;
- the share of gross domestic product allocated by the state for the development of the social sphere and meeting the social needs of the population;
- the presence of a wide range and compliance with social standards of a decent
life;
- public participation in the examination of government management decisions for their social effectiveness;
- the degree of social orientation and social responsibility of the business;
- level of development of social infrastructure and material base of the social sphere.
Today, only a state that is capable of not only declaring high social ideals, but is ready to pursue a strong and responsible social policy in accordance with international guidelines and national capabilities based on the principles of democracy, legality and humanism can be considered truly social. These principles flow from the very essence of a democratic legal social state and are a solid basis for the effective implementation of its social functions. And Uzbekistan, forming a welfare state, today strives for exactly this. In life, this is realized through provisions such as:
- economic freedom;
- trust in the regulatory role of the market;
- consistency of interests of all social and national groups;
- equal access of citizens to education, healthcare, achievements of science, culture and art;
- social justice;
- social partnership.
CONCLUSION.
Thus, the formation of a welfare state in many countries, including Uzbekistan, is at the earliest (initial) stage. In the updated Constitution adopted in 2023, Uzbekistan is declared a welfare state. The principle "New Uzbekistan is a welfare state" is enshrined as a constitutional norm. However, already in the last five or six years in our country the basic requirements of the welfare state have been introduced into practice:
Firstly, the Development Strategy of New Uzbekistan for 2022-2026 identifies priority tasks: maintaining a fair social policy, developing the social sphere and human capital.
Secondly, the Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction was organized, and the work of single-centers was established. "Iron", "women's" and "youth" notebooks were created, and working pensioners began to receive full pensions.
Thirdly, attention is paid to the areas of education and health care that correspond to the welfare state.
But today there are still many issues related to the formation of a welfare state. These, for example, include the following:
- What is the role of civil society in a welfare state and the forms of their interaction?
- Do the framework of the national state collapse during the formation of a social one?
- Is it necessary to take into account the processes of globalization when forming a welfare state? And etc.
REFERENCES
1. Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan (New edition) - 05/01/2023. https://lex.uz/docs/6445147
2. Mirziyoyev Sh.M. The new social protection system will ensure human dignity. 02/20/2024 (Speech at a video conference meeting) https://president.uz/ru/lists/view/7041
3. Cousins M. European welfare states: Comparative perspectives. - London: SAGE Publications, 2005. P. 4-5.
4. Daniels R.J., Trebilcock M.J. Rethinking the Welfare State: The prospects for government by voucher. - London: Routledge, 2005. P.8.
5. Kaufmann F.-X. European foundations of the welfare state (Translated from the German by J. Veit-Wilson with the assistance of T. Skelton-Robinson). - New York: Berghahn Books, 2012. P. 197.
6. Lawrence von Stein. History of the social movement in France since 1789: Trans. with 2 German ed. Volume 1- / Lorenz Stein. The basic concept of society and social history of the French Revolution until 1830. - St. Petersburg: 1872. https://rusneb.ru/catalog/000199_000009_003875045/
7. Marcuzzo M.C. Keynes and the Welfare State. P.3. - URL: http: //www.ie. ufrj .br/eventos/ seminarios/pesquisa/texto_02_12 .pdf.
8. Nisnevich Y. Political and Legal Concept of Modern Democratic State // American Journal of Sociological Research. 2012. Vol. 2. № 3. Pp. 35.
9. Tavip M. The dynamic concept of welfare state in Indonesian Constitution / Brawijaya University. - P.-3-4. URL: http://hukum.ub.ac.id/ wp-content/uploads/2013/05/THE-DYNAMIC-CONCEPT-OF-WELFARE-STATE-ININDONESIAN-CONSTITUTION.pdf.
10. Vartiainen A. Globalization and The Welfare State: A Case Study of Finland: Master's Thesis. - P.5-6. URL: https://www.gsp.uni-freiburg.de/research/vartiainen.2011 .pdf.
