A country’s pension system is unique to its economic and historical context so it is difficult to draw direct comparisons. But there are some elements that pension experts see as universally good, that lead to better financial outcomes for older citizens. The three elements used for the rankings are:

1. Base level of state income as well as the design of the private pension system.
2. How sustainable the state pension is including the age at which it kicks in, the level of advanced funding by the government and the level of government debt being used to fund it.
3. Protections for retirees – regulations and governance put in place to protect pension plan members.

The visual below covers 43 countries representing about 65% of the world’s population. New Zealand’s position was sitting at number 14, well behind Australia ranked at number 5.

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