Beyond Contributory Pensions : Fourteen Experiences with Coverage Expansion in Latin America

Rofman, Rafael ; Apella, Ignacio ; Vezza, Evelyn

Washington, DC:World Bank

关键词: aging population;    elderly;    noncontributory scheme;    pension and social services;    welfare;   

DOI  :  10.1596/978-1-4648-0390-1
RP-ID  :  92872

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Latin America's population isaging, and many among the growing elderly population are notprotected by traditional pension schemes. In response,policy makers have been reevaluating their income protectionsystems so that between 2000 and 2013, the majority of LatinAmerican countries reformed their social pension schemes toprovide near-universal coverage for the elderly. Before thisunprecedented wave of reform, most income protection inLatin America was provided through contributory pensionsavailable only to formal sector workers. Considering thatinformal and unpaid employment characterize labor forceparticipation throughout the region, many elderly were leftvulnerable to poverty. The new noncontributory pensionprograms have alleviated this risk. But countries are stillevaluating how to best balance the need for inclusivity withthe need for fiscal sustainability. This report examinesrecent reforms in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile,Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Panama,Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay. Allcountries share the goal of comprehensive pension coverage,but each has unique political environments, socialconditions, and economic capacities. Design andimplementation of coverage expansion, consequently, hasdiverged. Comparing results across the region reveals whichpolicies have yielded the most equitable and sustainableoutcomes. Each chapter includes a comprehensive analysis ofa country's reform experience: a description ofsignificant political and economic developments, thechallenges of implementing income protection policies, andprospects for the reforms' durability over time. Thisreport represents a significant addition to the literatureon income protection for the elderly.