00:00Should the retirement age for women in Colombia be increased?
00:03The president of the Supreme Court of Justice, Iván Mauricio Lenis,
00:07He said the country must put on the table the debate of a possible increase in the retirement age.
00:11for women.
00:12Today, women retire at 57 and men at 62.
00:16But be aware, for now it's just a proposal.
00:19Lenis raised it in the justice and citizenship spaces organized by the Supreme Court of Justice.
00:23A change of this magnitude would have to go through Congress.
00:26This is a sensitive issue, because retiring in Colombia is difficult.
00:29And it is even more so for women.
00:31According to a report from the University of the Andes,
00:34Only 13.2% of women of retirement age meet the requirements to retire.
00:38In men, the figure is 24.9%.
00:41Previously, women had to meet the same number of weeks requirement as men to qualify for a pension.
00:461,300 in Colpensiones and a minimum of 1,150 in private funds.
00:50But by order of the Constitutional Court, the requirement began to be gradually lowered.
00:54From this year until it reaches 1,000 in 2036 for those affiliated with Colpensiones
00:58and in 2035 for those affiliated with private funds.
01:02The pension reform, which will come into effect on April 1, 2027,
01:06It also gradually reduces the requirement for women to 1,000 weeks by 2036.
01:11Therefore, both women who remain in the current system and those who enter the reform will feel the reduction.
01:17In addition, the pension includes a reduction of 50 weeks for each child up to 3 children.
01:22The Constitutional Court returned this point to the House of Representatives so that procedural defects could be corrected.
01:28So there could be changes.
01:30How beneficial is it for women?
01:32For years, experts and analysts have warned that Colombia must raise the retirement age for men and women.
01:37for the fiscal sustainability of the system.
01:40The population is aging, and there will be fewer and fewer people contributing to support the new pensioners.
01:45But there are different perspectives on what is best for women.
01:48According to Luz Karimi Abadía, dean of the Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences at the Pontifical Javeriana University,
01:54Raising the age can be convenient if done gradually.
01:57That is, provided that mechanisms are maintained to recognize caregiving responsibilities.
02:01Abadía explained that a longer working life could improve the amount of women's pensions.
02:05and open up more opportunities for training and advancement for them.
02:08Oscar Becerra, a professor at the University of the Andes, sees advantages and disadvantages.
02:12On the plus side, women would have more time to complete the weeks
02:16and, if they contribute regularly, a higher pension.
02:19On the other hand, they would have to wait longer to retire,
02:22This is especially difficult for those with health problems.
02:25Alejandra Trujillo, FESCOL project coordinator,
02:28Remember why the age difference exists.
02:30It seeks to compensate for inequalities that still exist.
02:33Women spend more than twice as much time as men on unpaid care work.
02:38That reduces their share of employment.
02:41Therefore, for Trujillo, raising the age does not guarantee that women can contribute more.
02:45For those who are in the informal sector or outside the labor market,
02:48It would only mean waiting longer.
02:50These and other arguments are on the table in this new debate
02:53about what should happen with the retirement age in Colombia.
03:03Thanks for watching the video.
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