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From reform to crisis: Argentina's pension system
Author(s) -
Bertranou Fabio M.,
Rofman Rafael,
Grushka Carlos O.
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
international social security review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.349
H-Index - 28
eISSN - 1468-246X
pISSN - 0020-871X
DOI - 10.1111/1468-246x.00160
Subject(s) - pension , pension system , government (linguistics) , socioeconomic status , financial crisis , economic policy , population , economics , development economics , business , economic growth , finance , macroeconomics , sociology , linguistics , philosophy , demography
Argentina underwent economic and social collapse in December 2001. The crisis brought the worst socioeconomic indicators in its history, and the pension system was not immune from this disaster, which was unparalleled in any middle‐income developing country. In 1994 the pension system had been restructured, and was regarded as a viable model for other reforms elsewhere. This article discusses in general terms the features of the current pension scheme, the structural problems that were not resolved in the reform of 1994, the relation between that reform and the government's financial crisis, and the impact of the economic collapse on the pension system. Finally, it discusses some aspects of the challenges faced in building a system that is financially viable and has the potential to close the major gaps in coverage affecting both the working population and older persons.