Publication: Sustainability of Pension Systems in the New EU member States and Croatia : Coping with Aging Challenges and Fiscal Pressures
Date
2008
ISSN
Published
2008
Author(s)
Abstract
This report concerns recent pension
reforms in Europe. Over the last decade, pension reform has
been a major issue on the political agenda across Europe.
All European countries are profoundly affected by aging
populations resulting from lower fertility and increased
life expectancy. In order to make pension systems more
sustainable in light of prospective demographic
developments, and in some cases to address current financing
problems, EU10+1countries have been reforming their pension
systems since the mid-1990s. The reforms have combined
measures to delay retirement, link benefits more closely to
contributions, and diversify risk. Three major forces drive
the ageing process: increasing life expectancy, low
fertility rates, and finally the baby-boom generation
reaching retirement age. All these factors, even in
countries where the system is currently fiscally balanced,
will produce a major financial challenge for pension systems
over the coming decades when the number of pensioners will
rapidly increase and the size of the working-age population
diminish. This report conclude that some countries (in
particular, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, and Romania) will
need to do more to safeguard the long-term viability of
their pension systems, and others face ongoing and future
challenges in ensuring equitable pension systems and
adequate living standards for all elderly people.
Citation
“Kąsek, Leszek; Laursen, Thomas; Skrok, Emilia. 2008. Sustainability of Pension Systems in the New EU member States and Croatia : Coping with Aging Challenges and Fiscal Pressures. World Bank Working Paper; No. 129. © Washington, DC : World Bank. http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/6358 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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