Pension monitoring is an important focus of the OECD’s work on ageing. The most recent edition of the report Pensions at a Glance was published in June 2007 updating the pension indicators developed in the first volume of 2005.  It contains two special chapters on pension reforms and on the role of private pensions.

Future editions of this biennial report will continue to update the indicators and introduce new indicators on pensions and ageing, such as data on private pensions, pension expenditures, and demographic data. There will also be special issues focussing, for example, on the incentives to retire in OECD pension systems and the retirement situation of women, in particular the treatment of career interruptions due to childcare and unemployment.

Past pension policies were hugely successful in reducing pensioner poverty in most OECD countries. Current pension reforms are responding to demographic pressures by scaling down pension promises. However, it is important to prevent a resurgence of pensioner poverty. Careful monitoring of the income situation of older people, such as the OECD analyses of poverty and income distribution, is crucial.

Private retirement plans also face enormous challenges. Low interest rates, slumping stock markets and corporate bankruptcies have left many retirement funds short of resources. Increasing life expectancy and population ageing add to the pressure. The OECD is monitoring private pension practices closely and promoting best practices in the management, regulation and supervision of private pensions as well as financial education to help people prepare for retirement. Finally, all countries will have to prepare to work longer; this will also entail reviewing the employment situation of seniors.