Comprehensive reform of China s pension and social security system is an essential element of achieving its objectives of a harmonious society and sustainable development. Over the past few years, the Government has considered various options and initiated several significant measures. In 2009 the authorities established a national framework for rural pensions, the Rural Pension Pilot Program (RPPP) and in 2011 a Pilot Social Pension Insurance for Urban Residents announced. In this process, it has articulated principles for a reformed urban pension system (indicated by 12 Chinese characters ) which are broad coverage, protects at the basic level, is multi-layered, and sustainable while the principles for the rural system (indicated by 12 characters ) are broad coverage, protects at the basic level, flexible, and sustainable. These principles underpin the commitments made at the 17th Party Congress towards a comprehensive and integrated social security system by 2020. Although substantial reforms of the pension system have been undertaken over the past two decades, some policymakers have suggested that additional reforms are needed to meet the needs of China s rapidly changing economy and society. Issues such as legacy costs, system fragmentation and limited coverage have not been fully addressed. At the same time, many new challenges have emerged such as rapid urbanization, increased income inequality and urban-rural disparities, greater informalization of the labor force, changes in family structure, and the effects of increased globalization. This report has been prepared at the request of the Ministry of Finance to develop a medium term vision of a holistic framework that could be realized by 2040 for strengthening old age income protection in China which is consistent with the principles outlined in the 12 characters and design options towards achieving it. The main body of this report outlines this vision summarizing the key features of a proposed medium-term pension system while the annexes provide the deeper analysis and context which underpins the recommendations contained herein."

The use of matching contributions to enhance the participation and level of savings in pensions system has now been in use for nearly three decades in a number of high income countries. Increasingly, countries across the full range of economic development are looking to the design as a means of addressing the low rates of participation in formal pension and other retirement savings systems. A number of countries have recently introduced innovations in their pension systems that significantly rely on contributions matches and related types of direct subsidies to provide incentives for groups that mandates and other indirect methods such as preferential tax treatment have been unsuccessful in reaching. There is particular interest among developing countries in utilizing this design to extend coverage to informal sector and low income workers that typically do not pay income related taxes. This volume provides descriptions and analysis of the design, experience and outcomes achieved in the high income countries where there information about the dynamics and outcomes that this approach has achieved is not beginning to emerge. It also reviews new efforts to use the design in a number of other settings in which the matching contributions have been included as a significant element in reform of the pension system. The review of the experience with matching contribution across this full range of settings provides important observations and some initial lessons for policy makers and analysts who may be considering or evaluating the use of this approach to increase pension coverage.

Countries throughout the world are increasingly relying on individual pension savings accounts to provide income replacement in old age for their citizens. Although these have now been in place for several decades, the metrics for the measurement of their performance has not always meaningful from the perspective the long term objectives of pension funds. The recent financial crisis has highlighted the need to establish meaningful performance measures that consider pension funds in relation to the ability to effectively provide income replacement at retirement age. The book discusses the theoretical basis and a number of implementation issues related to the emerging view that at meaningful evaluation of the investment performance of pension funds requires the design of life-cycle benchmarks against which performance can be evaluated. The composition of these benchmarks would depend on a number of factors, including the presence of other sources of retirement income; the age of individuals; the rate of contributions; the target replacement rate; the expected density of contributions; the type of retirement income in the payout phase, and the risk aversion of policymakers and individuals. This book provides an evaluation of the financial performance of funded pension systems within the standard mean variance framework. It then provides a discussion of the limitations inherent to applying these methods to pension funds and proceeds to review the many other issues that should be addressed in developing more useful and meaningful performance measures through the formulation of pension specific benchmark portfolios. Evaluating the Financial Performance of Pension Funds concludes with commentary and observations about the need for and application of this new approach to performance measurement and the impact of the recent global financial crisis on the pension funds.

The past decade has brought an increasing recognition to the importance of pension systems to the economic stability of nations and the security of their aging populations. During this time, the World Bank has taken a leading role in addressing this challenge through its support for pension reforms around the world. 'Old-Age Income Support in the 21st Century' attempts to explain current policy thinking and update the World Bank's perspective on pension reform. The Bank has been involved in pension reforms in nearly 60 countries, and the demand for its support continues to grow. This book incorporates lessons learned from recent Bank experiences and research that have significantly increased knowledge and insight regarding how best to proceed in the future. The book has a comprehensive introduction and two main parts. Part I presents the conceptual underpinnings for the Bank's thinking on pension systems and reforms, including structure of Bank lending in this area. Part II highlights key design and implementation issues where it signals areas of confidence and areas for further research and experience, and includes a section on regional reform experiences, including Latin American and Europe and Central Asia. This book will be of interest to Bank clients, the international community, and anyone interested in pension systems and reform.