The growing gap in income security
Around the world, millions enter older age without any guaranteed income. In lower‑income countries, only a small minority receive a pension. Women face even slimmer chances, often because their working lives have been spent in informal jobs or unpaid care. Without a pension, older people must continue working despite declining health or rely on family support that is far from certain.
This widening gap is prompting more governments to adopt tax‑financed schemes – often called social pensions – to ensure that every older person receives a basic income, regardless of their work history. Organisations led by older people have long understood the power of these schemes and continue to advocate for universal models that leave no one behind.
What the new report reveals
The new analysis of social pensions across Asia–Pacific offers four clear messages.
- Universal pension systems require social pensions: Almost no country has reached full pension coverage without a strong social pension component. Broad‑based social pensions remain the most immediate and effective route to ensuring that everyone is protected in older age.
- Universal schemes are the most effective: Programmes that reach all older people, without complicated targeting, deliver the strongest results. They are fairer, easier to run, more inclusive and more politically resilient. Because everyone benefits, societies are more willing to support them, and governments are more likely to maintain adequate payment levels.
- The impacts are far‑reaching and well‑proven: Evidence from across the region shows that even modest social pensions deliver measurable gains. They increase household spending, with the greatest improvements seen among the poorest families. They boost health, reduce disability and improve cognitive functioning, in part due to better nutrition and greater access to care. The mental health benefits are similarly documented. These schemes strengthen families too. Older people often use their pensions to support grandchildren or contribute to household needs. Families with children can reinvest resources previously used to support ageing parents. Communities benefit as older people participate more actively in local life and voluntary roles.
- Social pensions are affordable, even for lower‑income countries: Affordability is often cited as a barrier, but the evidence shows otherwise. Countries that have successfully built robust systems did so gradually: starting with a higher age threshold and lowering it over time, or beginning with smaller payments and steadily increasing them. With careful design, social pensions are well within the reach of all governments.
A human right
Social protection is a fundamental right. With decades of research confirming that social pensions are both effective and affordable, denying older people basic income security is no longer defensible. In a world where populations are ageing rapidly, the failure to act is a political choice, and one that carries deep social costs.
Expanding and improving social pensions is one of the most direct and impactful ways to enable older people to take part fully and meaningfully in political, social, economic and cultural life.
