April 2025

Why ageing well takes a village

For people to age well, they need systems, sectors and policies that create the conditions to support good health and economic well-being. One element of this involves creating policies that ensure people are not forced to stop working simply because they have reached a certain age. Policy-makers, employers and the public sector have collaborated on legislation that enables older people to keep working if they wish. Like everything in life, ageing is not something we do alone. That’s even more true when...

US. More and more Americans are draining their 401(k)s to survive — with ‘hardship withdrawals’ at 15%-20% above normal.

More Americans are tapping into their 401(k) to make ends meet — treating it more like an emergency fund than a retirement savings plan. Hardship withdrawals are running 15% to 20% above the historical norm, Empower CEO Ed Murphy told Bloomberg TV. Empower is the second-largest retirement plan (by number of participants) in the U.S. While new rules make it easier to withdraw funds, some people may be turning to their retirement savings as prices on consumer goods — from groceries to...

Nigeria. PenCom to recover unpaid pensions from power firms

The National Pension Commission has intensified efforts to recover unpaid pension contributions from electricity generation and distribution companies across the country. In a statement made available to our correspondent on Sunday, PenCom’s Director-General, Omolola Oloworaran, during a courtesy visit to the headquarters of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission recently, led a delegation to seek NERC’s intervention in enforcing compliance among erring power companies. According to Oloworaran, at least 16 power generation and distribution companies have failed to remit billions of naira...

México lidera la reducción de pobreza en América Latina pese a estancamiento económico: Banco Mundial

México es el país de América Latina y el Caribe donde más se ha reducido la pobreza en los últimos años, reveló el Banco Mundial (BM) en su más reciente informe sobre las perspectivas económicas de la región. De 2018 a 2023, la pobreza en el país disminuyó alrededor de 7 puntos porcentuales, la caída más significativa en toda la región Según el adelanto del Reporte Económico de América Latina y el Caribe (LACER), esta mejora fue impulsada principalmente por dos factores: los programas de transferencias sociales y...

Consenso en tiempos de división: lecciones de la reforma de pensiones de Chile

La histórica reforma de pensiones de Chile ofrece un caso de estudio sobre cómo alcanzar el consenso en medio de una profunda polarización política y desconfianza institucional, que reflejan una tendencia global más amplia. El acuerdo se basó en un diálogo persistente, fundamentos técnicos, compromisos estratégicos y un liderazgo político dedicado a navegar por complejas divisiones ideológicas. La experiencia chilena ofrece lecciones oportunas para las democracias que se enfrentan a retos similares, demostrando que es posible avanzar en...

US Labor Department considers overturning pension fund ESG rule

The US Department of Labor has requested that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals suspend litigation over a Biden-era rule that allows pension funds to consider environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors. With federal agencies now operating under the Trump administration, a number of states have attempted to overturn the Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights rule, which enables retirement fund managers to take ESG factors into account in the case of a tiebreaker between two financially...

China’s Pension Fund Returns Outdo Many in US, Europe, Former Official Says

China’s pension returns on investment are better than those in many developed countries in Europe and the US and are in a globally leading position, the former chairman of the National Council of Social Security Fund of China, which manages the country’s largest pension fund, the National Social Security Fund, said yesterday China’s strong pension returns are mainly because prices in the country are relatively stable and the investment products are reasonable, Dai Xianglong, who is also a former governor...

UK. Bill for underpaid state pensions set to hit £1 billion

New figures from DWP suggest that the total amount of state pension arrears to be paid out by the Government because of multiple errors is set to pass the £1 billion mark this year. Following the government's plans to consolidate small pension pots, it has also published the latest update of how much has been underpaid in state pensions to date. There are two separate correction exercises currently underway. The initial correction exercise which started in January 2021 and is nearing conclusion relates...

Brasil investiga fraude de pensiones que robó 1.000 millones de dólares a jubilados

La policía federal de Brasil investiga un esquema que desvió más de 6.000 millones de reales (1.050 millones de dólares) de pensiones pagadas por el Instituto Nacional del Seguro Social, informaron autoridades el miércoles. La investigación gira en torno a 11 organizaciones que operaron entre 2019 y 2024, informaron las autoridades a los periodistas. El esquema incluía a jubilados listados como miembros de asociaciones que recaudaban parte de sus pensiones mensuales como cuotas para las organizaciones. Sin embargo, los jubilados...

México. Ahorro para el retiro; Bajan 7% las cuentas Afore

Las cuentas de ahorro para el retiro en manos de las administradoras de fondos para el retiro (afore) observan una caída de poco más de 7 por ciento, teniendo una mayor contracción las pertenecientes a las mujeres, de acuerdo con datos de la Comisión Nacional del Sistema de Ahorro para el Retiro (Consar). Las cuentas administradas por las afore reportaron en marzo, respecto al mismo mes del año pasado, una contracción anual de 7.8 por ciento al pasar de 74...