Slovenia faces tough challenges as its population ages rapidly, putting huge pressure on public finances. Though the long-term prospects remain bleak, the immediate impact of ageing appears to be mitigated by pension reform measures, according to the latest statistics.
In the first half of this year there were 431,700 old-age pensioners, up 1.5% year-on-year, while the total number of recipients of pensions (which includes survivors, widows and early retirements) grew by 0.6% to 612,200, show data by the Pension and Disability Insurance Institute (ZPIZ).
"Last year we had the slowest growth in the number of old-age pensioners in a decade, this year the rate is expected to be even lower," says ZPIZ financial director David Klarič.
The figures appear to show the pension reform of 2012 working in deferring retirement, but in-depth examination figures suggest the change is slow.
In the first half of the year Women retired on average 58 years and ten months old with 36 years and 4 months of years of service. Men retired at 61 with 38 years and eight months of years of service.
The average retirement age was thus in fact two months lower than at the end of last year, though for both men and women retired with significantly more years of service.
In accordance with the pension reform, women are eligible for old-age pensions at 58 years and eight months with 39 years of service. The figures for men and 59 and 40 years, respectively.
While the retirement age is not yet increasing, the statistics show that an increasing share of older people are taking advantage of provisions allowing them to draw 20% of their old-age pension while continuing to work.
The number of such people almost doubled to 2,174 last year, a figure that Klarič said showed the system was "working very well".
The ZPIZ is yet to produce data on the support ratio, the number of pensioners relative to the number of workers, for the first six months. In the first quarter it was at 1 pensioner per 1.36 contributors.
Source: TheSloveniaTimes
