They say that retired life is just beginning. But here in Russia, the affairs of the elderly, who went on a well-deserved rest, are very bad. This is evidenced by Global Retirement Benefit Index 2017Developed by Natixis Global Asset Management, a privately held asset management holding company, and CoreData Research, a consultancy in the areas of market research, media, industry and marketing.
Index Compilation Methodology
The index includes 18 performance indicators grouped by four thematic subindexes. They cover key aspects of retirement welfare:
- material means for a secured stay of a pensioner;
- the ability to receive quality financial services to help maximize revenue;
- the opportunity to receive quality medical services;
- clean and safe environment.
Researchers calculated the average score in each category and combined the scores for the final overall ranking of 43 countries studied.
Russia in the ranking of the best countries for pensioners took the fortieth line out of forty-three (total score - 45%), ahead of Brazil, Greece and India. Compared to 2016, her indicators in the subindexes “Material well-being” (35th place) and “Health” (42nd place) have slightly worsened, but her quality of life (36th place) and “Finance” (43rd position) have improved.
But here is a dozen states in which pensioners live most comfortably.
Eight of the most retirement-friendly countries — Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg — are located in Western Europe. Each of the countries in the top 10 has a high level in at least one subindex.
- New Zealand has the highest score in the Finance sub-index, gaining 79%.
- Norway has the highest score in the material wealth subindex — 91%.
- Luxembourg ranks first in the Health sub-index (92%).
- The leader in environmental quality is Denmark (94%).
At the same time, the Finance for Pension subindex turned out to be a stumbling block for a number of rating participants. Only four countries in the list of the best - New Zealand, Switzerland, Australia and Norway - are in the top ten in the financial sub-index. A higher tax burden and public debt as a percentage of GDP pushed other countries down one line. Some of the best countries for pensioners in 2017 also have a small base of young working-age citizens, which simply cannot fully provide for senior citizens.
Seven of the ten leading countries - Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, Denmark and Sweden - are also among the top ten in terms of material well-being.
In addition, countries in the first positions of the pension index have high per capita income and a relatively high level of income equality.
