Lekovic: Pensioner can only be protected by reform
- Lekovic: Pensioner can only be protected by reform
- Post By daniloc
- 13:18, 9 mart, 2002

Reform of Montenegrin pension system should provide its long-term stability, social insurance of the old and protection of the poorest pensioners, has been estimated by a member of working group for reforms in this sphere Tijana Lekovic.
Social balance, increase of the saving and economic efficiency of the reformed pension system will influence the economic growth and development. Pension system based upon personal saving will create a sense of responsibility of every individual for its own future", considers Lekovic.
She has emphasized that the employed should be provided transparency and freedom of choice of pension fund in which they will invest since in the currently existing system great number of workers do not know what percentage of their salaries goes for taxes and contributions and they do not get report on their payment.
She says that team of domestic and foreign experts in the sphere of fiscal and tax system and macro statistics is working on the reform of pension system in Montenegro.
The expert team is currently working on the projection of model of the pension system that is to be applied in Montenegro in the next 50 years taking into consideration macro-economic and demographic trends. Experts of the World bank are preparing new Law on pension system that the Government should pass till the end of the year.", says Lekovic.
According to her, reformed Montenegrin pension system should be based upon 3 pillars first of which would represent the current obligatory system of paying the contribution rate for social insurance. The second pillar is also obligatory that is to be financed variously: through the individual pension accounts of the insured in the private pension funds and through social insurance contributions. The third pillar of the pension system will be financed through accounts of the private pension funds.
Lekovic adds that individual account in pension funds is similar to the bank savings account since individuals are giving money till being retired and after that the money they paid in will be paid on installments.
"Pension Funds invests money of its insured so it makes income higher then inflation. Privatization pension funds are already existing in Montenegro. Institute for strategic studies and prognosis and Center for entrepreneurship have established them for their employed", said Lekovic.
Benefits resulting from this reformed pension system should be bigger then expenses of its transformation, which could be financed by incomes from privatization, special state#s getting-into-debt or budget transfers.
Lekovic estimates that the current Montenegrin pension system in which the currently employed are financing pensioners will be applied for at least 15 years.
"This system is not flexible, since the average pension in Montenegro is about 55% and in the world about 33% of the average gross salary. Pension system expenses are almost 18% of the domestic product while the usual expenses in the world amount to 6%", she claims.
She adds that one third of able-to-work citizens invests into pensions and just as much users are drawing disability pension and it is far higher then the world average.
"Montenegro, just as highly developed countries, faced with the aging of citizens and decrease of birth rate and it means that number of those who pay contributions to pension fund decreases and number of pensioner increases. It means that tax burden of young workers increases with the aim of providing pensions", explained Lekovic.
Experts in pension reforms consider that the insured of the private pension funds that are to be founded in Montenegro will have chance to invest into market of highly-developed countries and it will reduce the risk of their investment. According the current pension system height of pension depends on the increase of salaries and in private funds it depends on return of capital from the market.
"Domestic and foreign pension funds have same chance to succeed at Montenegrin market since the insured will place their trust to those they expect benefits from in the old age and the funds will try to justify it and to realize long-term profit", considers the member of the working group for reform of the pension fund in Montenegro Tijana Lekovic.