Reform of the Russian Pension System: Development Directions and Evaluation Criteria

Abstract:

Any model of the pension system can be considered effective provided it meets the requirements of fluctuating economic conditions; therefore, such models should be flexible to timely respond to inevitable changes. The article seeks to address the question of the appropriate degree of radicalism in these changes and the assessment of their impact. An analysis was carried out to assess the results of a Russian pension system reform. Main trends and directions of the reform were considered in a historical perspective covering the period from the beginning of the post-Soviet period up to the present. The main shortcomings and disadvantages of the pension system characteristic of the end of the Soviet period and thus far preserved are outlined. The prerequisites and factors led to the beginning of active modernisation and a change in the vector of development are described. The analysis of changes in the structure and model of the pension insurance system is provided. The characteristic of new pension tools and the difficulties that arose in the process of their development and implementation are described. The macroeconomic conditions for the search for an effective model of the Russian pension system are described. The particular attention in the article is paid to those principles of the pension insurance system that prevailed in a given period of the country’s development. Various systems for assessing the pension system are presented with their features being highlighted. The size of pensions was adopted as a criterion for assessing the results of the reform of the pension system. By superimposing the dynamics of such basic parameters as the replacement coefficient on the reform stages in the pension system, a graphic assessment of its consequences was obtained. Based on the presented assessment, a conclusion is drawn about unresolved problems in the Russian pension system.

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