Pension funds and social security

The majority of people in Africa lack social protection. The standard narrative across the continent is of a small percentage of the population in formal employment for whom social security is possible. When you consider the latest available statistics of formal measures of social protection, such as the working-age population above 15 years old covered by pension schemes (active contributors as a percentage) and the labour force above the age of 15 covered by a pension scheme (active contributors as a percentage), the comparative figures for Africa are low.

For Africa in general, and more specifically sub-Saharan Africa, urgent measures are required to improve future pension coverage for economically active Africans who are of working age and actively contributing to existing pension schemes.