Vietnam: World Bank urges action on pension fund
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Jul 2018
Vietnam Pensions & Annuities
Vietnam’s economy could be at risk if nothing is done quickly to fix its state pension system, the World Bank has warned after conducting two years of research.
Vietnam’s pension fund will run out by 2030, and the deficit will account for 2.5-3% of the country’s GDP in 2060-2070, World Bank country director for Vietnam Ousmane Dione said at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue in Hanoi in June, according to a report by VN Express.
The country may encounter an imbalance between collection and spending of the fund in the future, when the number of old people receiving welfare payments is higher than those of working age who are contributing to the fund, he said.
Vietnam should raise its retirement age for both male and female workers to the same level step by step. The retirement age in Vietnam is currently 60 for men and 55 for women.
The number of Vietnamese who are over 65 will rise from 6.3m now to 18m by 2040, accounting for more than 18% of the population and transforming Vietnam from a young society into an old one.
The Labour Ministry has proposed gradually raising the retirement age for men and women to 62 and 60 respectively in a step-by-step approach that will add six months to the current retirement age every year starting in 2021. A