Can the World Afford to Retire? How One Country is Addressing the Crisis

Global Retirement Challenges - The US has 57 million Americans without savings or retirement plans [1] - Many countries face challenges in providing adequate retirement income due to lower interest rates and increasing life expectancy [2][3][4] - OECD reports 40% of elderly in Korea live on less than half of the median income, and just under 25% in the US [3] Dutch Pension System - The Netherlands has around €1600 billion (16000 亿欧元) in pension assets, equating to approximately 150% to 300% of its GDP [6] - Dutch pension assets account for 59% of all European pension funds, despite having only 4% of the population [6] - The Netherlands is transitioning from defined benefits to defined contribution to increase the sustainability of the fund [7] - The Dutch pension reform discussions started in the early 2000s and the shape of the current reform was decided around the start of the pandemic [8][9] Investment Strategies and Risk Management - The Dutch system allows pension asset managers to invest in higher risk and higher yield assets for younger workers [16] - The focus shifts from contributions to stable investment results as individuals near retirement [17][18] Policy and Consensus Building - The Dutch system emphasizes consensus building between employers, employees, and the government [19] - Political uncertainty around the pension reform ended after a failed vote in Parliament and a shift in government [11]