The suggestion from a Bahamian actuary that the solution to our social security and pension woes was for our citizens to spend longer years in the workforce, while at the same time, slashing benefits to retirees was a little too much to stomach.We get it. Our population is ageing, and the number of younger people employed and contributing to the social security system is falling.This combination is not what social security and investment managers want to hear but it is the reality confronting not just us in Barbados but other nations in the Caribbean.The issues are many and the solutions are far from simple.The Central Bank of Barbados must be commended for keeping this topic on the front burner and highlighting the interconnectedness of employment, GDP growth, the population and the health status of the island’s population.In its July edition of the Caribbean Economic Forum titled: Solving the Ageing Population Crisis in the Caribbean, we heard suggestions from an eminently qualified panel that included Professor Emeritus Karl Theodore, Senior Consultant advisor at the Centre for Health Economics at the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine; Derek Osborne, Actuary and Partner at LifeWorks, The Bahamas; and Diane Quarless Director of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) Sub-Regional Headquarters for the Caribbean.
