Vietnam's retirement income system has been included for the first time in the the Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index, the 2024 edition of which was released earlier this week.
With the inclusion of Vietnam in 2024, this study now includes 48 retirement income systems, representing 65% of the world’s population. There is great diversity between the systems around the world, with the Index scores ranging from 44.0 for India to 84.8 for the Netherlands.
Vietnam has a total Index score of 54.5, placing it in 38th position among the 48 pension markets assessed.
The report notes, “Vietnam’s system comprises a social security system. There are voluntary occupational corporate and individual pension plans, but since they are relatively recent developments, their coverage is low.”
The report adds that the overall index value for the Vietnamese system could be increased by:
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Increasing the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals
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Expanding the coverage of employees in occupational pension schemes, thereby increasing the level of contributions and assets
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Increasing the level of individual contributions that are invested through the private pension arrangements
In the Asia Pacific, the standings of the 14 markets evaluated are as shown below:
|
Global rank
|
Markets
|
Total
|
Sub-indices
|
Total
|
|
2024
|
Adequacy
|
Sustainability
|
Integrity
|
2023
|
|
5
|
Singapore
|
78.7
|
79.8
|
74.3
|
83.0
|
76.3
|
|
6
|
Australia
|
76.7
|
68.4
|
79.5
|
86.1
|
77.3
|
|
14
|
New Zealand
|
68.7
|
64.8
|
64.9
|
80.2
|
68.3
|
|
25
|
Hong Kong
|
63.9
|
51.5
|
61.1
|
87.5
|
64.0
|
|
31
|
China (mainland)
|
56.5
|
65.2
|
37.8
|
69.1
|
55.3
|
|
32
|
Malaysia
|
56.3
|
44.5
|
54.6
|
77.4
|
56.0
|
|
36
|
Japan
|
54.9
|
57.1
|
47.1
|
62.1
|
56.3
|
|
38
|
Vietnam
|
54.5
|
56.8
|
41.3
|
69.3
|
NEW
|
|
39
|
Taiwan
|
53.7
|
46.2
|
51.9
|
68.2
|
53.6
|
|
41
|
South Korea
|
52.2
|
40.5
|
52.4
|
70.5
|
51.2
|
|
43
|
Thailand
|
50.0
|
50.2
|
43.8
|
58.2
|
46.4
|
|
42
|
Indonesia
|
50.2
|
38.1
|
50.4
|
69.3
|
51.8
|
|
46
|
Philippines
|
45.8
|
41.7
|
63.4
|
27.7
|
45.2
|
|
48
|
India
|
44.0
|
34.2
|
44.9
|
58.4
|
45.9
|
|
|
Global average
|
63.8
|
64.7
|
54.3
|
74.1
|
63.0
|
|
Source: Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index 2024
|
|
|
Above average
|
|
Below average
|
At the top of the rankings are the Netherlands, Iceland, Denmark, and Israel, whose overall Index scores are above 80, with their retirement income systems viewed as first class and robust, and graded ‘A’.
Australia and Singapore are graded ‘B+”, as their scores are between 75 and 80, the highest for markets in the Asia Pacific.