ArmInfo.The MSAPS (Multi-Step Accumulative Pension System) in Armenia was initially introduced in the context of solving demographic problems. This was stated by the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs of Armenia Mane Tandilyan at the meeting with journalists on August 22, summing up the results of the 100-day work. With this in mind, according to Tandilyan, it is reasonable to reduce accumulative pension payments for citizens who have large families.
"Why a large family with 3-4 children should make payments in the same amount as those who do not have children?" - the Minister asked. Proceeding from the same considerations, she said, one of the proposed options for reforming the pension system is to reduce the accumulative payout from 5% of the salary to 1% for those with three or more children in the family. In this case, as explained by Tandilyan, if for today the state co-financing for the rest is 7.5%, and citizens pay 2.5%, then for this category of working citizens this ratio will be 1% to 9%.
In addition, according to the minister, the possibility of establishing cases in which pension savings can be obtained ahead of schedule, for example, in case of a serious illness, is being discussed.
Currently, the head of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs refrains to name the terms of implementation of reforms, but assures that the mandatory pension savings system will be revised, and "at least improved."
The multi-stage accumulative pension system - mandatory for persons born after January 1, 1974, was introduced in Armenia from January 1, 2014, and from July 1, 2018, its obligatory component was launched (for citizens born before January 1, 1974, there is a distribution pension system). According to the RA Law on funded pensions, the basic minimum pension will be equal to the subsistence minimum, and the basic pension will be 150% of the subsistence minimum. By the end of June, the system participants were about 200 thousand people. Since July 1, 2018, another 50- 80 thousand beneficiaries are to join it. A total of 120 billion drams have been accumulated in management companies, 70% of which have been invested in the economy of the country: state bonds, mortgage bonds and bank debt securities, generally aimed at hedging risks for pensioners. The average yield of these securities in 2017 was 12.8%.
Earlier, on June 21 this year. Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Mane Tandilyan assured that within the next 2 months a new bill on the funded pension system will be submitted - the document will provide for a voluntary component. Following the results of discussions with the public in the fall, the bill will be submitted to the parliament. Already on January 1, 2019, according to her, it is expected that the new law will be put into effect. Meanwhile, earlier, on June 12, Mane Tandilyan resigned. Its decision, she justified a contradiction in the implementation of mandatory funded pension system with the current Cabinet. She always opposed the MSAPS in its present form.