Access to at least a basic level of social security throughout the life cycle is a human right, fundamental to ensuring individuals’ health and dignity. Social protection systems are at the core of efforts to ensure decent living conditions for the whole population throughout their lives. The proportion of the population covered by social protection floors provides an indication of the extent to which the ideal of the universality of social protection is accomplished and of how secure the population's health and living conditions are. It is therefore a key indicator that conveys information on how protected the population is from the various contingencies potentially faced in life.