An Assessment of a Proposed Multi-Pillar Pension Reform in Peru.

This article estimates and analyses the potential fiscal and distributive effects of a proposal to transform the current Peruvian pension system into a multi-pillar pension system. In this new system, part of the contributions would go to a solidarity fund to finance minimum pensions, and the rest to individual retirement accounts. The simulation of actuarial liabilities and future distributions of pensions are performed using random samples from the database of administrative records of individuals insured by the Peruvian public and private pension systems as at December 2013. This study analyses the effects of the reform on actuarial liabilities, inequality of pensions, and overall wellbeing of pensioners, in order to illustrate the different trade-offs involved in pension reform. At the same time, the explicit inclusion of normative judgments in the evaluation of welfare functions makes it possible to determine that a multi-pillar pension system is better than the current one, even under the stringent condition of no aversion to inequality.