The FINANCIAL — If a German citizen were to retire today, on average he could look forward to roughly 18 years of retirement. Back in the seventies, it would have been only 13 years. Yet are those extra years really something to look forward to – or will they turn into a burden? Will the state pension income ever be enough? How are we doing compared to our neighbors in Austria? And have Greece’s numerous reforms finally made its pension system sustainable?
Pension schemes around the world are swimming in choppy waters – so much so, that even the experts themselves can get lost. Presenting an interactive world map with a wealth of background information, the PROJECT M Global Pension Atlas offers guidance in the global retirement landscape.
Compare countries and time periods with just a few clicks
Users can not only just research some interesting facts, but create a detailed analysis of different countries and periods of time, including the impact of increasing life expectancy and the ongoing shift from defined benefit to defined contribution. They can also use the map to set complex issues in relation, and for example find answers to the question of whether the pension system in a country is financially sustainable and at the same able to allow pensioners an adequate retirement income.
“The Global Pension Atlas bundles all the know-how of the Allianz think tank International Pensions”, said team leader Brigitte Miksa. “Go on an interactive adventure around the world, let the wind of demographic change be your only compass and the Global Pension Atlas your only guide. The Atlas is a comprehensive research tool that’s fun to use, more than anything else.”
Helping you understand dramatic changes in global systems at a glance
Among other research, the atlas is based on the Allianz Pension Sustainability Index. The Index analyzes the state of pension systems around the world following years, if not decades of extensive reforms. The PSI examines key drivers such as demographic trends, the state of government finances and the structure of the pension system to make the need – or the lack thereof – transparent. Germany recently slipped back in the PSI-ranking, not least because its population is aging more rapidly than expected. This is also likely to result in a rise in pension expenditure.
Looking at sustainability’s flip side, the Allianz Retirement Income Adequacy Index (RIA, http://bit.ly/ria-indicator) assesses retirement income sources, including statutory, company and private retirement provisioning, financial assets and real estate. Moreover, it places a particular emphasis on evaluating old age spending, such as that on medical care.
“At the end of the day, no atlas can tell us what retirement will really be like. It can, however, make this complex subject more transparent”, says Miksa.
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