South Asia

In most South Asian countries only the very small proportion of the population that belongs to the salaried class (overwhelmingly urban and male) has access to pensions and social security after retirement. In many cases widows can draw a deceased husband’s pension. Rural women in particular are often not aware of their entitlements or are not easily able to keep track of the rules and regulations that govern their receipt. The bulk of the population depends on familial support or personal savings, or simply keeps working as long as possible. The formal age of retirement for the salaried class in most South Asian countries ranges from fifty-five to sixty years. Nevertheless, work participation among those age sixty-five and above for the South Asian countries being studied (except Sri Lanka) is high, ranging from almost one-third to almost one-half, and is projected to decline very little by 2050 (see Table 4).

Pension and social security programs in South Asia. Old age pensions and other forms of social security are less developed programs in most of South Asia. As the population ages, the issue of financing social security will grow more pressing. In 1989 social security expenditures accounted, on average, for approximately 0.9 percent of gross domestic product in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka; by 1992 the average had increased to 1.6 percent. For instance, the percentage was 1.8 for India and 4.7 percent for Sri Lanka (International Labour Office).

Table 5 Males Per 100 Females in Populations Age 65-Plus in South Asia, 2000 and 2025 SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of the Census, International Database