January 2026

The future of public pension provision in the UK: challenges and trade-offs

By Jonathan Cribb , Carl Emmerson & Heidi Karjalainen The UK state pension system faces significant challenges given the country’s ageing population, but at the same time it is crucial for retirement finances: state pensions make up on average almost half of income for recently retired households. Reforms coming into force in 2010 and 2016 have increased universality, and most future pensioners will receive a full (flat rate) state pension. Policy-makers seeking to limit the cost of the system have...

Refining longevity risks for China’s ageing population

Just like every dark cloud has a silver lining, insurers are proficient at managing risks and turning them into opportunities. As an ageing population has become a pressing issue around the globe, the booming demand for insurance and annuities presents considerable potential. China, one of the fastest-ageing countries, is expected to see its personal insurance market expand from four trillion Chinese yuan (US$553 billion) in 2021 to between 6.6 and 12.6 trillion Chinese yuan by 2035, according to the Boston...

December 2025

Charted: U.S. Population Growth by Year (2005-2055)

Key Takeaways In 2025, the U.S. population is forecast to grow 0.2% amid record-low fertility rates and an aging population. Over the next 30 years, population growth is expected to decline to zero. By 2048, population will peak, as net immigration growth and natural population decline (deaths > births) cancel each other out. U.S. population growth is slowing, and is projected to grind to a halt by 2048. Today, historically low fertility means births only marginally exceed deaths. Not only that, within the next...

Social Security Reforms and Inequality among Older Workers in Spain

By Cristina Bellés-Obrero, Manuel Flores, Pilar Garcia-Gomez, Sergi Jimenez-Martin & Judit Vall Castelló This chapter studies social security reforms and trends in inequalities among older workers over the last decades in Spain. Its main goal is to analyze the redistributive impact of the various pension reforms on older income inequality. Compared to the rules in 1985, recent pension reforms have led to an average increase on Social Security Wealth of approximately 18,000€ for men and 15,000€ for women. This represents...

Public pensions and family dynamics: Eldercare, child investment, and son preference in rural China

By Naijia Guo, Wei Huang & Ruixin Wang Using variations in the timing of the New Rural Pension Scheme (NRPS) across rural Chinese counties, we examine its effects on eldercare mode, child investment, and son preference. Our findings are three-fold: (1) After the introduction of NRPS, married sons are less likely to live with and provide care for their parents, while married daughters show no significant change in their caregiving behavior; (2) Parents reduce the brideprice for their sons but not the dowry...

Aging in Ghana: Challenges, Realities, and Struggles

In Ghana, like many countries across Africa and the world, the population of older adults is steadily increasing due to improvements in healthcare and longer life expectancy. However, growing older in Ghana brings a number of social, economic, health, and emotional challenges especially for those without formal jobs, pensions, or family support systems. Demographic and Social Changes Ghana’s elderly population (aged 60 and above) has grown significantly over past decades. Although they make up a relatively small percentage of the total...

8 ways countries with aging populations are reshaping the economy

Across many advanced economies, falling birth rates and rising life expectancy are reshaping labor markets, public finances, and growth assumptions faster than policymakers expected. What once unfolded over generations is now compressing into decades, leaving less time to adapt. The economic consequences are structural. Smaller working-age populations limit output and strain employers. Larger retiree populations increase spending on pensions and healthcare. Tax bases narrow just as public costs rise. These forces interact, reinforcing slower growth rather than canceling each other...

Ghana. Rethinking Pensioners’ Advocacy in Ghana: A New Model of SSNIT Pensioners’ Association

Ghana’s pensioner population is steadily growing. With improved life expectancy and decades of formal employment feeding into the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), retirees today number about two hundred and fifty thousand, if not more. Yet paradoxically, this expanding demographic, arguably one of the most vulnerable and policy-affected groups remains one of the least effectively represented in national decision-making. For decades, the National Pensioners Association (NPA) has been the most visible body claiming to speak for pensioners, particularly...

Luxembourg’s Pension Outlook: Strong Forecasting Today, Hard Reform Choices Ahead

A study on the IMF's December 2025 Technical Assistance Report on Luxembourg's pension projections offers a detailed examination of how reliably the country has been forecasting the financial future of its public pension system. Prepared by the International Monetary Fund's Fiscal Affairs Department in cooperation with Luxembourg's General Inspectorate of Social Security (IGSS), the national statistical institute STATEC, and within the EU framework coordinated by the Ageing Working Group (AWG), the report reflects a collaborative, evidence-based effort to assess...

US Workforce Is Aging Fastest in These Industries

The U.S. workforce is aging, and workers who are 55 or older have been the fastest-growing age group in the labor force for more than two decades, according to new research by the U.S. Census Bureau. Those aged 55 or older made up almost a quarter (24 percent) of the U.S. workforce in 2022, which was up from 10 percent in 1994. The data also revealed which industries have greater concentrations of older workers than others. Why It Matters There is growing concern about America's...