Age of retirement in Uzbekistan to reach 63 for men, 58 for women

In Uzbekistan, it is planned to increase the retirement age of men to 63 and women - 58. Also, next year, an increase in the required minimum of work experience is considered.

Previously, the Finance Ministry stressed that taking into account the social significance of the proposed reforms, it is necessary to gradually introduce them. Therefore, it is proposed to increase the required minimum of work experience to 10 years at the first stage, increasing by a year starting from 2019. And the retirement age will be raised every year for 6 months, starting from 2022, bringing it to 58 years for women and 63 for men.

The average retirement age in the world for men and women is 62 years, while in Uzbekistan this figure is 57.5 years. In the neighboring countries, for example, in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, the right to retirement has been established as 63 years for men and 58 for women. In Turkmenistan, the retirement age is 62 years for men and 57 for women. And in Uzbekistan, women retire at 55 years of age and men at 60.

With regard to the minimum of work experience, the experts suggested raising it from seven years to international standards. According to the International Labor Organization Convention, the minimum required length of service for the appointment of pension per aging is set at 15 years. In many countries of the world, including the CIS countries, the minimum required experience has been brought to the level of 10-15 years.

An increase in the retirement age is also related to average life expectancy in the country. Thus, Uzbekistan ranks first by life expectancy in Central Asia. This is stated in the UN analytical review “10 most important events in Central Asia in 2018”.

Life expectancy in Uzbekistan reached 73.8 years, in Tajikistan - 73.7 years, in Kazakhstan - 72.4 years, in Kyrgyzstan - 70.9 years and in Turkmenistan - 70.4 years.

“Another main criterion for retirement is the required work experience, which should reach 25 years for men and 20 years for women upon completing the retirement age. However, for 10 months of the current year, about 56% of the newly appointed pensions are those with incomplete work experience,” executive director of the Off-Budget Pension Fund Erkin Tursunov told.

He also noted that the length of the average work experience upon retirement is 24 years for men and 18 years for women. While in Germany it is necessary to have 45 years of work experience, in France - 41 years, in Japan, Sweden and Greece - 40 years, in Spain - 38.5 years, in the UK - 35 years for both men and women.

“Therefore, the state pension system must be reformed in the future to ensure financial sustainability, balance the income and expenses of the pension fund, as well as introduce modern mechanisms that encourage continuous participation of citizens in the social insurance system and ensure their decent pensions,” the expert noted. 

According to Farkhod Kurbonboyev, an economist, as average life expectancy increases, proportion of the people older than 60 and a smaller number of workers also increases, so growing number of non-working people must be well maintained. Raising the retirement age is an objective necessity and this is a global trend.

“Many people, who are approaching their retirement age, are fully matured professionals in specific fields. They have a lot of experience and enough opportunities. If they work, those people can bring benefits to their family and public,” the economist noted.

Mr. Kurbonboyev also believes that it is necessary to change the procedure for calculating pensions, which is based on the minimum monthly wage (MMW).

“The President of the country has instructed to protect the concept of “consumer basket” by law. The State Program-2018 has spelled out the development of consumer basket and subsistence minimum. Calculation of pensions should be tied to this term. The current MMW does not correspond to its name,” the expert mentioned.