Social security coverage in Latin America

For almost a decade, the debate on social security in the region has revolved around the diversification of risks, macroeconomic effects of the systems, and private sector participation in their management. Now, however, many analysts are starting to focus on the issue of coverage. The debate on social security coverage has been complicated by a lack of consistent quantitative information that would allow for rigorous comparisons of different countries and different periods. Although many recently published articles and opinions include statistics, their sources and methodology are not always clear. For that reason, the publication of coverage information in a significant number of the region's countries, calculated simultaneously and based on similar data, makes an important contribution to clarifying the debate and developing specific policy proposals. This document is a first step in that direction. It presents coverage indicators and their determinants for seventeen countries of Latin America, based on Household Surveys. The information is not perfect, given problems of comparability among instruments and systems, as well as difficulties for precisely capturing the characteristics sought in the survey data. Consequently, the authors consider this document to be a first step in a collective information evaluation process, understanding that the results may be adjusted in future reviews.

Collecting and transferring pension contributions

Collecting social security contributions is an important operational issue in all types of pension systems. Many regimes are plagued by poor compliance and weak, inefficient administration. Some countries have tried to introduce an automatic incentive to contribute by moving systems closer to"actuarial fairness,"where pension benefits are more strictly related to individual contributions. Examples include the systems of individual accounts introduced in a range of countries in Latin America and Eastern Europe. But in these regimes, collecting and transferring contributions is a more complex process. This paper considers different aspects of collecting pension contributions. In the first section the authors describe the most serious problems affecting collection systems in several countries. Section 2 presents the conceptual relationships between alternative pension-system models and collection systems. Section 3 deals with the differences between centralized and decentralized collection systems and their advantages and disadvantages. Section 4 looks at operational issues. Section 5 compares experiences of the collection systems in a range of different countries. Section 6 looks at problems of regulation and supervision, while the final section presents conclusions.Pensions&Retirement Systems,Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Stabilization,National Governance,Health Monitoring&Evaluation

Annuity markets and benefit design in multi-pillar pension schemes : experience and lessons from four Latin American countries

A growing number of countries have introduced mandatory defined contribution schemes. As these schemes mature, their success will increasingly depend on how well they translate accumulated funds into a stream of retirement income. Successful reforms will rely on a well regulated, and competitive insurance sector. They will strike a balance between individual preferences, and public policy objectives, such as providing a reasonable amount of longevity insurance. This paper describes the benefit stage in four Latin American countries, and presents preliminary evidence on their emerging annuities markets. We find that these markets are less transparent than they should be, and that supervision is less strict than during the accumulation period. Annuities markets will grow dramatically in the coming decades as the reforms mature. Growth depends on policy variables, such as the use of recognition bonds, as well as initial conditions. The markets in Peru and Colombia, will be much smaller than those in Chile and Argentina, in both absolute, and relative terms. The immaturity of the schemes, and temporarily limited flow of new pensioners, should be viewed as a window of opportunity for improving supervision, increasing transparency, and educating workers.Insurance&Risk Mitigation,Pensions&Retirement Systems,Non Bank Financial Institutions,Environmental Economics&Policies,Banks&BankingReform

The pension system in Argentina - six years after the reform

In the context of a serious financial, and legal crisis, Argentina reformed its pension system in 1994, when a multi-pillar model with a funded scheme was introduced, and first pillar parameters, as minimum age and vesting requirements were tightened. The new system has a significant first pillar (which offers a flat benefit, currently valued at 28 percent of average wage to all retirees), and a second pillar, that should provide a similar amount, once the transition is completed. The new system has developed rapidly, and most formal workers have joined the new funded scheme. However, there are problems that must be resolved. In the first pillar, the reform balanced long term finances, but it will also reduce coverage very rapidly, as a consequence of the combined effect of low formality in the labor market, and stricter contribution requirements. The most serious problems in the funded pillar are the administration costs, and the need to improve regulation, and supervision of insurance companies, that provide disability, and survivors coverage, and annuities to beneficiaries. While these problems are important, their consequences can be avoided if adequate policies are developed by the Government. In this sense, the experience of the pension reform in Argentina is an excellent lesson for other countries that are considering a reform in their own systems.Banks&Banking Reform,Environmental Economics&Policies,Economic Theory&Research,Pensions&Retirement Systems,Insurance&Risk Mitigation

Pension Systems in Latin America: Concepts and Measurements of Coverage

Pension systems’ performance around the world can be usually assessed by considering three dimensions: coverage, adequacy, and sustainability. This paper focuses on the coverage dimension, looking at empirical data in Latin America. It represents a review and expansion of a previous analysis (such as Rofman and Carranza, 2005), as it corrects a few methodological problems and expands the timeframe. Data were available for 18 countries, for a period that starts in the early 1990s to the mid 2000s. Recognizing the difficulties involved in comparing the available information, the paper presents a group of similar indicators that make it possible to measure coverage in the various countries, both among active workers and among the elderly. In addition, several socio-demographic characteristics of the covered population are presented and discussed, identifying relevant differentials. The covariates taken into account in the study are: age, geographical areas, sector of employment, level of education, gender, occupation, firm size, and income quintiles.Coverage, Pension Systems, Latin America.

Supervising mandatory funded pension systems: issues and challenges

The regulation and supervision of pension funds is a critical part of building public confidence in a funded-pension system. This paper argues that confidence is best bolstered by an independent, autonomous and transparent supervision agency, particularly when previous systems had failed. The choice between proactive and reactive supervision depends on previous experience of selfregulation in a country’s financial sector. The paper examines four key areas of supervision in detail: institutional, financial, membership and benefits control. It looks at collection of contributions, asset valuation, portfolio limits, custodianship and benefit guarantees. New data are presented on the performance of supervision agencies in and on marketing and operation costs of new pension funds in Latin America. Comparative data for OECD countries are also included.pensions; regulation; supervision

How reduced demand for children and access to family planning accelerated the fertility decline in Colombia

By the early 1960s, Colombia was one of the fastest growing countries in the world. With a total fertility rate of seven children per woman and a rapidly declining mortality, its population was growing at a rate that would double in size every 22 years. But from the years 1973 - 1985 the doubling time increased to 41 years. This slowdown in growth, caused by a dramatic decline in fertility, was one of the most rapid demographic transition processes in the world. The causes and mechanisms of this phenomena deserve to be carefully studied if the experience is to be replicated in other countries. A framework developed by Richard Easterlin is used in this study to analyze the fertility change in Colombia. Considering the effects of socioeconomic changes on supply of and demand for children, together with effects on regulation costs, this framework will allow us to understand the underlying causes and processes behind the fertility decline.Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Health Economics&Finance,Adolescent Health

Modelling the spatial organization of cell proliferation in the developing central nervous system

How far is neuroepithelial cell proliferation in the developing central nervous system a deterministic process? Or, to put it in a more precise way, how accurately can it be described by a deterministic mathematical model? To provide tracks to answer this question, a deterministic system of transport and diffusion partial differential equations, both physiologically and spatially structured, is introduced as a model to describe the spatially organized process of cell proliferation during the development of the central nervous system. As an initial step towards dealing with the three-dimensional case, a unidimensional version of the model is presented. Numerical analysis and numerical tests are performed. In this work we also achieve a first experimental validation of the proposed model, by using cell proliferation data recorded from histological sections obtained during the development of the optic tectum in the chick embryo

Un repaso sobre las políticas de protección social y la distribución del ingreso en Argentina

Este artículo parte de las tendencias observadas en la desigualdad en la distribución del ingreso y la pobreza y discute su relación con las políticas de protección social en Argentina y sus recientes reformas. Se propone identificar los paradigmas que sustentan los cambios de políticas ocurridos desde las últimas décadas del siglo pasado. Se observa una importante expansión en la cobertura y un alejamiento del modelo tradicional contributivo, dirigido a trabajadores asalariados formales. Se identifican impactos parciales de los principales programas sobre indicadores de bienestar para luego discutir sobre los desafíos pendientes a futuro en cuanto al acceso, eficiencia y sostenibilidad financiera.This article describes the main trends in income distribution and poverty in Argentina and discusses their relationship with social protection policies in Argentina and their recent reforms. The aim is to identify paradigms underpinning policy changes that occurred since the last decades of the past century. There was a major expansion in terms of coverage and a departure from the traditional contributory model where access to social protection was limited to workers in the formal sector. This study identifies impacts, although partial, of the programs on welfare indicators, to then discuss their main challenges in terms of accessibility, efficiency and financial sustainability in the future.Instituto de Investigaciones Económica