An examination of the public pension and social security schemes in
Pakistan reveals that the provision of regular pensions is limited to formal sector
employees only. A number of social security schemes that are operational in the
public and private sectors cover a small proportion of old-age population,
whereas a significant proportion of the elderly population working in the
informal sector remains largely unprotected by social security schemes. As such,
the challenge of meeting the needs of the increasing elderly population demands
an improvement of the support base and social security system in Pakistan that
emphasises the need to implement reforms of public pensions and programmes
of social protection. Efficient deployment of resources and improvement of the
governance structure are needed for effective welfare of the eligible sub-group
of the elderly and the economically disadvantaged population.