PSRM Demands Moratorium on Raising Retirement Age

During a press briefing, PSRM MP Alla Darovannaia called on the parliamentary majority and the government to impose a moratorium on raising the retirement age, stressing that further increases would lead to social injustice and increased tensions. “In 2020, on the initiative of the PSRM, the retirement age was set at 57 for women and 62 for men. However, the new government abolished this rule, returning to a policy of gradually raising the retirement age,” Darovannaia recalled, according to actualitati.md. According to her, given the declining life expectancy in Moldova, especially in rural areas (where men live to an average age of 65), raising the retirement age effectively means that a significant proportion of citizens will not live long enough to receive a pension, or will receive it for only a very short time. She emphasized: More than 1.2 million people live in rural areas, many of whom work in difficult conditions. In 2024, 7,000 fewer children were born than in 2020, exacerbating the demographic burden on the pension system. Only 14.6% of workers earn more than 20,000 lei, and almost half earn less than 10,000, which makes it impossible to build up private pension savings. Darovannaia stated that there are no real conditions in the country for raising the retirement age, and that current pensions do not provide a minimum standard of living: “Many elderly people stand in line from 4 a.m. for subsidized bread because they cannot afford to buy regular bread for 7 lei”. The deputy proposed: To introduce a moratorium on raising the retirement age. To fix it at 61 for women and 63 for men. To carry out structural reforms and review the approach to financing the pension system. “We are talking not only about compassion, but also about economic realism. The retirement age should correspond to the actual life expectancy and income level of citizens. We urge the authorities to listen to the people – at least in the last days of this parliament’s term,” the MP said.