Women Struggle to Retire as Early or as Securely as Men – Sanlam
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GUEST – Farzana Botha - Segment Manager at Sanlam Risk and Savings
Longevity literacy is critical to help women live confidently and securely when it comes to their wind-down years. South Africa’s gender pension gap sits at 26%, reflecting the average difference in retirement income between men and women. Farzana Botha, Segment Manager at Sanlam Risk and Savings, says that often, women cannot afford to retire as early or as comfortably as men. She believes that turning this around should be a national imperative. Botha says, “A multitude of factors contribute to the gender pension gap, including the facts that women typically live about five years longer than men, but earn 82% of what their male peers make, for equivalent work. Closing this pay gap will take close to 300 years. Women must be empowered to control what they can. This includes stretching their retirement incomes for longer and preparing for higher healthcare costs.
Longevity literacy is key to this.” A recent Sanlam study shows that, like men, women hope to retire comfortably from age 65 on. “We need to reframe retirement to be more personal and less rigid and conventional. The wind-down years offer incredible opportunities to pursue new careers, travel and passion projects, spend time with loved ones, and impact one’s community in a lasting way. In fact, 33% of women view retirement as an opportunity to start a second, gentler career. That’s what we need to empower women to focus on. Then it’s about building real roadmaps to achieve the requisite financial freedom to reach these goals.
Longevity literacy is critical to help women live confidently and securely when it comes to their wind-down years. South Africa’s gender pension gap sits at 26%, reflecting the average difference in retirement income between men and women. Farzana Botha, Segment Manager at Sanlam Risk and Savings, says that often, women cannot afford to retire as early or as comfortably as men. She believes that turning this around should be a national imperative. Botha says, “A multitude of factors contribute to the gender pension gap, including the facts that women typically live about five years longer than men, but earn 82% of what their male peers make, for equivalent work. Closing this pay gap will take close to 300 years. Women must be empowered to control what they can. This includes stretching their retirement incomes for longer and preparing for higher healthcare costs.
Longevity literacy is key to this.” A recent Sanlam study shows that, like men, women hope to retire comfortably from age 65 on. “We need to reframe retirement to be more personal and less rigid and conventional. The wind-down years offer incredible opportunities to pursue new careers, travel and passion projects, spend time with loved ones, and impact one’s community in a lasting way. In fact, 33% of women view retirement as an opportunity to start a second, gentler career. That’s what we need to empower women to focus on. Then it’s about building real roadmaps to achieve the requisite financial freedom to reach these goals.
