THE WAY FORWARD TO A NATIONAL POLICY ON RETIREMENT ISSUES

Kudos to KMDC, organisers of Malaysia's first-ever conference on Retirement Transformation. Held on 3 August at the Sime Darby Convention Centre, the event couldn't have come at a better time. With the slowing down of the birthrate and longer life expectancy, 9.9% of the population in Malaysia will be aged 60 and above by 2020. According to UN definition, any country with 10% of its population above the age of 60 is categorized as an ageing nation.

Slide: Prof Ong Fon Sim of UniRAZAK

Thanks to pre-conference interviews that were carried in the local media and in magazines like Smart Investor, the conference succeeded in drawing attention to key retirement issues and the challenges posed by an ageing population, namely:

• strain on public retirement funds e.g. EPF and pension funds
• higher medical and healthcare costs
• provision of age-friendly facilities
• measures to retain older workers
• empowering elders to be actively engaged

Slide: Mr Cheah Chuan Lok of Federation of Investment Managers Malaysia (FIMM)

Slide: Mr Mohamed Akwal Sultan, CEO of Credit Counselling and Debt Management Agency (AKPK)

The discussions covered a wide range of topics. Although much of the focus was on financial literacy, some of the speakers touched on other areas like re-employment of older workers, business opportunities in the silver industry, wellness and retirement living. Click here for the full list of speakers.

Slide: Dr Goh Chee Leong, Faculty Dean, HELP University College

It wasn't just all talk. At the press conference which I attended, Datuk Dr Zainal Aznam Yusof of the National Economic Advisory Council (NEAC), announced the launch of the Foundation for Sustainable Retirement (FSR). As the protem chairman, he explained the objectives of FSR and the way forward in transforming the retirement landscape in the country. For more information on FSR, please read my earlier post on BREAKING NEWS: LAUNCH OF THE FOUNDATION FOR SUSTAINABLE RETIREMENT.

Members of the protem FSR committee and advisory panel present at the press conference: Datuk Dr Zainal; Mr Kim Walker, CEO of Silver Group, Singapore; Mr Roland Naufal, Founder of 4C Consulting, Australia; Mr Khoo Chuan Keat, Sr Exe Director of Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Malaysia; and Mr Tadaaki Masuda, Director of Council on Ageing, Japan.

It is reassuring for retirees to know that policy-makers and key industry players are working in tandem to come up with proposals they hope will lead to the development of a national retirement policy that will benefit all stakeholders.

BREAKING NEWS: LAUNCH OF FOUNDATION FOR SUSTAINABLE RETIREMENT

Some really exciting news to report. The over-50s in Malaysia will now have an organization to look into their interests and needs. It's been a long wait but better late than never.

The Foundation for Sustainable Retirement (FSR) was launched at the conclusion of the Retirement Transformation Conference held yesterday at the Sime Darby Convention Centre. A non-profit organization, it aims to "promote a sustainable retirement system and to grow an age-neutral society that dignifies the status of the retiree".

There have been NGOs proclaiming to be the voice of senior citizens, but many have either faded into oblivion from inactivity or are existing as old tigers - toothless and without bite. FSR does seem to have some clout judging from the who's who on the Board of Trustees and Advisory Panel.

The pro-tem chairman is Datuk Dr Zainal Aznam Yusuf, a man who wears many important hats. As a fellow senior citizen, he is someone who can leverage on his wealth of experience to speak on our behalf to policy-makers in the government. The advisory panel includes retirement experts from Japan, Australia and Singapore. The full list of initial members can be viewed in the FSR booklet that you can download here.

Content page of the FSR booklet.

 Key objectives of the FSR:

• maximize employment potential for retirees
• improve health and wellness outcomes
• promote personal responsibility and well-being
• complement efforts to improve financial well-being
  

FSR initiatives for the next six months:

• job matching for employers and the over-55s
• online magazine for stakeholders to communicate on retirement issues
• online survey on public perception of retirement homes
• introduction of a wellness program

Finally there is some glimmer of hope that the over-50s will not remain marginalized, abandoned and forgotten as the rest of the country moves forward. Lest the government forgets, the country cannot enjoy sustainable economic growth without putting in place sustainable retirement policies and practices. By 2020, that's just a mere ten years away, Malaysia will have reached ageing nation status. 10% of its population will be 60 and above.

With FSR mapping out the road ahead, there is hope the golden years will retain their lustre for retirees.