Malta. The poverty of pensions – Michael Briguglio
In my article entitled ‘The pensions myopia’ (April 30) I argued that the government may be over-optimistic in its projections regarding the sustainability of state pensions in the coming years. I also proposed a national consensus on the matter in the interest of future pensioners.
In this article I would like to discuss the current pensions system and the way it is affecting today’s pensioners. It is no secret that many pensioners are facing hard times in trying to make ends meet.
The 2018 pension adequacy report published by the European Commission provides a very good insight in this regard. In short, this three-yearly report says that: “Malta’s pensions protect against absolute poverty, but they do not constitute an adequate income replacement and as such pensioners are currently facing difficulties in making ends meet.”
It adds that reforms in the Maltese pension system, the most important of which were introduced in 2014, have made the system more sustainable, but adequacy remains a challenge. Whether it is adequately sustainable is another matter.
Read More: Times of Malta
