Measurement and Impact of Longevity Risk in Portfolios of Pension Annuity: The Case in Sub Saharan Africa

Abstract

Longevity is without a doubt on the rise throughout the world due to advances in technology and health. Since 1960, Ghana’s average annual mortality improvement has been about 1.236%. This poses serious longevity risks to numerous longevity-bearing assets and liabilities. As a result, this research investigates the effect of mortality improvement on pension annuities related to a particular pension scheme in Ghana. Different stochastic mortality models (Lee–Carter, Renshaw–Haberman, Cairns–Blake–Dowd, and Quadratic Cairns–Blake–Dowd) are used to forecast mortality improvements between 2021 and 2030. The results from accuracy metrics indicate that the quadratic Cairns–Blake–Dowd model exhibits the best fit to the mortality data. The findings from the study demonstrate that mortality for increasing ages within the retirement period was declining, with increasing improvement associated with increasing ages. Furthermore, the forecasts were used to estimate the associated single benefit annuity for a GHS 1 per annum payment to pensioners, and it was discovered that the annuity value expected to be paid to such people was not significantly different regardless of the pensioner’s current age.