Botswana’s pension system has been marked down in the latest global retirement-income index, underscoring the challenges facing policymakers as ageing populations and changing workforce dynamics put pressure on pension systems worldwide.
The country scored 57.0 points and received a C grade in the 2026 Marsh CFA Institute Global Pension Index, with the results indicating a decline from the previous year. The assessment places Botswana among pension systems that face scope for improvement as governments grapple with the challenge of delivering adequate retirement incomes while ensuring long-term financial sustainability.
The index, published in October, assesses 55 pension systems across three key measures: adequacy, sustainability and integrity. Together, the three pillars account for 40%, 35% and 25% of the overall score, respectively. The assessment covers about 66% of the world’s population.
The findings come as pension systems face mounting pressure from longer life expectancies, lower birth rates and changes in employment patterns, which can increase retirement costs while reducing the proportion of working-age people supporting pension arrangements.
‘People are living longer, work is changing, and the pressures on retirement income systems are growing,’ said Tim Jenkins, the report’s lead author and a partner at Marsh. ‘The question is no longer whether systems need to evolve, but how quickly and how effectively they can do so.’
The report warns that ageing populations could increase the cost of providing retirement income as the working-age population shrinks relative to retirees. It also highlights the need for more flexible pension arrangements that accommodate phased retirement and non-traditional employment.
Those pressures have implications for pension-fund investment strategies, with the report noting that a greater proportion of the US$70 trillion in global pension assets could move towards more defensive positioning as demographic changes reshape retirement needs.
The Netherlands led the overall index with a score of 85.8, followed by Denmark at 84.1 and Iceland at 84.0. Singapore and Israel also received A grades, with scores of 82.0 and 81.9, respectively. The rankings highlight the gap between stronger-performing retirement systems and those still facing challenges in providing sufficient retirement income and maintaining their long-term resilience.
Mona Naqvi, managing director of the CFA Institute Research and Policy Center, said pension systems must respond to demographic shifts while maintaining reliable retirement incomes. ‘Retirement systems differ across markets, but all face the same long-term challenge: Delivering reliable income as demographics shift and markets change.’
The report argues that demographic pressures do not dictate a single outcome, leaving policymakers room to strengthen pension arrangements through evidence-based reforms. ‘The central insight is straightforward: demography is our destiny, but policy responses are choices,’ the report states.