Government Reiterates Commitment to Citizens’ Well-Being Through Pension Reform Measures

Government is strongly committed to safeguard the well-being and social protection for present and future generations while ensuring long-term economic stability and resilience, through a series of decisive pension reforms and targeted social support measures.

This was the gist of the reply of the Prime Minister, Dr Navinchandra Ramgoolam, yesterday in the National Assembly, to a Parliamentary Question on the socio-economic impact assessment of the effects of the increase in the eligibility age to benefit from the Basic Retirement Pension on vulnerable groups, including low-income earners, in the context of the preparation of the forthcoming Budget.

At the outset, Prime Minister Ramgoolam recalled that the government inherited a severely strained fiscal situation, with public debt nearing 90% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a budget deficit of 9.3% as at June 2025. He pointed out that years of unsustainable policies had placed immense pressure on public finances, prompting urgent corrective action.

Central to the reforms, he underlined, is the restructuring of the Basic Retirement Pension (BRP), whose cost had risen sharply over the years, from 1.9% of GDP in 2010 to 7.8% in 2024/2025. Without intervention, projections showed that BRP expenditure could reach Rs 100 billion by 2035, threatening the sustainability of the country’s welfare system, Dr Ramgoolam said.

The Prime Minister indicated that Government introduced a gradual increase in the eligibility age for the BRP from 60 to 65 years over a five-year period starting September 2025 in a bid to address the issue. “This measure aims not only to restore fiscal balance but also to ensure that future generations continue to benefit from a reliable pension system,” he said.

Government had set up two Inter-Ministerial Committees, which were subsequently merged, to look into the matter. The Committee had studied and assessed the impact of the pension reform with a view to come up with various options and possibilities to support those affected by the reform, particularly the poor and vulnerable groups.

Two main measures were proposed, the first one was the implementation of an Income Support, through the Mauritius Revenue Authority, to individuals who no longer qualify for the BRP, targeting those with monthly incomes below Rs 10,000 for single individuals and Rs 20,000 for couples. Initially set at Rs 10,000, the monthly support was increased to Rs 10,370 in January 2026 for the loss in purchasing power due to inflation, the Prime Minister added.

According to Dr Ramgoolam, the second measure provides for beneficiaries of the Basic Invalidity Pension, the Basic Widow’s Pension and the Invalidity Allowance, who turn 60 years of age, to continue to receive their respective pensions until they qualify for the BRP.

Government, he outlined, has also set up a Commission of Experts on Pension Reform in September 2025 to look at the pension system globally and make recommendations to reform the three pillars of our pension system, including the pillar one, that is, the basic retirement pension. Other policy measures will be announced in the forthcoming Budget, he concluded.

15 April 2026

Email: gis@govmu.org

Website: https://gis.govmu.org

Mobile App: GIS News

Topics: Others