India has won the International Social Security Association (ISSA) Award for Outstanding Achievement in Social Security 2025, recognising the country's remarkable expansion of social protection coverage over the past decade.
The award was presented at the World Social Security Forum held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. India became only the 5th recipient globally to receive this prestigious recognition.
India's social security coverage has grown from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025 — a jump of over 45 percentage points in ten years. This extraordinary expansion has brought approximately 940 million citizens under some form of social protection.
A key pillar of this achievement is the eShram portal, launched in 2021, which has registered over 300 million unorganised sector workers. eShram provides a single unified platform for unorganised workers to access government welfare schemes, insurance benefits, and employment opportunities.
Other major programmes contributing to this coverage expansion include PM-KISAN (farm income support), PMJJBY and PMSBY (life and accident insurance), Ayushman Bharat (health coverage for 500 million people), and the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) for elderly and disabled citizens.
The ISSA was founded in 1927 and represents social security institutions from over 160 countries. Its Outstanding Achievement Award is one of the highest international recognitions in the field of social protection.
India's achievement is particularly significant because it demonstrates that large-scale social security expansion is feasible in a developing economy through digital infrastructure, Jan Dhan financial inclusion, Aadhaar-linked direct benefit transfers, and robust policy frameworks.