"Failure to Reform the National Pension Will Trigger a Revolt by Future Generations" — Incoming President of the Korean Pension Association Stresses Urgency of Reform (2021)

At a recently held spring academic conference jointly organized by the Korean Pension Association and the Population Association of Korea, Professor Lee Chang-su of the Department of Information Statistics and Actuarial Science at Soongsil University posed the question: "By 2065, one person of working age will have to support at least one elderly person.

Is that realistically possible?" He then answered his own question, stating: "It probably is not, and at some point a revolt by future generations seems likely to erupt."

Professor Lee, currently serving as Senior Vice President of the Korean Pension Association, is slated to become its next President.

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He further stated that "after the fund is depleted, (the government budget required to cover losses in the public pension system) will reach between 15,000 trillion won and 18,000 trillion won by 2088," adding that "this is not a burden that future generations can bear."

In closing, Professor Lee emphasized that reform is necessary for the public pension system to remain sustainable.

Professor Lee noted: "Germany and Japan have both carried out pension reforms. Japan's reform cannot be called perfect, but it is substantial.

The Nordic countries that Korea seeks to benchmark have also undertaken reforms," warning that "if reform is not pursued, a situation similar to that of Greece could materialize.

If the current trajectory continues, the situation could turn out to be even more severe than that of Greece," he forecast.

https://m.news.nate.com/view/20210623n14632