The pension system of the Transnistrian region, as the system from the right bank of the Nistru River, is on the verge of a large-scale crisis following the rise in the number of pensioners at a time when the number of taxpayers decreases. The region’s pension system was inherited from the Soviet period, being an atypical one compared with most of the systems in Europe. Such conclusions are contained in the new number of the publication “Nistrian realities” that is produced by the Institute for Development and Social Initiatives “Viitorul”, IPN reports.
According to the analysis, the pension system of Transnistria is maintained from foreign funds and, de facto, can cover only the strict necessities. The Transnistrian society is mainly elderly and the number of pensioners is on the rise. Currently, there are over 140,000 pensioners in the region, which is about 27% of the region’s population. This figure in 2014 will rise by about 2,000 pensioners. In 2015 the number of pensioners will continue to rise, while the able to work people will decline in number following migration to Russia, Ukraine and the EU.
As a result of the reduction in the number of taxpayers and the increase in the number of pensioners, the Transnistrian region faces an explosive growth of the spending related to state pensions, like Moldova. Transnistria depends greatly on Russian humanitarian funds that are the only source of covering the budget deficit of the region.
The publication says it is more evident that the public pension systems will be unable to ensure decent incomes for the future Moldovan pensioners, no matter on what bank of the Nistru they live. The public polices on both banks do not guarantee the covering of the real costs of the pension systems. Therefore, there are real preconditions for a total collapse of these systems.
Tax evasion is a serious problem on both banks of the river, but the combating measures do not yet produce results on an average term. Thus, there are few chances that relevant incomes will be collected into the social budget for increasing the pensions and allowances for socially underprivileged persons.
