Social security institutions around the world, whether they operate in the occupational or non-occupational sector, face an escalating combination of economic, social and demographic challenges which strain their continued financial viability and may jeopardize their ability to combat social insecurity.

While national social security institutions – whose operating structures, financial parameters and policy and programme mandates vary widely – are not confronted with identical challenges at any given time, they nevertheless face relatively consistent and broad global developments. These include a population with growing life expectancies, the increasing pace of private and public sector restructuring to maintain competitiveness in a global society, a rapid escalation in the growth of claims on the grounds of mental health and low system outflow rates for programme beneficiaries, coupled with low overall labour market hiring rates for persons with disabilities.

While some social security institutions are better financially resourced to withstand these identified global changes in the short term, the compound effect of these systemic challenges without radical corrective action will lead to substantially increased system costs, present challenges for the financial viability of the organization and ultimately may lead to reduced levels of benefits and services for those for whom the system was initially established, including for persons with disabilities.