Economic, Social, and Institutional approaches to Retirement: A State of Knowledge

Abstract

This article provides an integrative narrative review of the economic, social, and institutional approaches mobilized to analyze the functioning, performance, and inequalities of the Moroccan pension system. Drawing on a structured examination of both international literature and Moroccan studies, the paper explores how challenges related to financial sustainability, institutional fragmentation, and unequal coverage have gradually emerged and intensified over time.The methodology is based on a critical and comparative review of key theoretical contributions, academic analyses, and national institutional reports. This approach makes it possible to identify points of analytical convergence, persistent limitations in the reform process, and dimensions that remain insufficiently explored in the Moroccan context. In doing so, the article highlights how economic models, social theories, and institutional frameworks contribute to a better understanding of the specific features of the Moroccan pension system, particularly those linked to labor market duality and the widespread presence of informality.The findings of the review point to four major observations. First, successive parametric reforms display structural limitations in restoring the long-term financial balance of pension schemes. Second, significant inequalities persist between public and private regimes, both in terms of accrued rights and pension benefit levels. Third, the integration of self-employed and informal workers remains particularly challenging, despite recent efforts to generalize social protection. Finally, the absence of a unified institutional framework continues to constrain transparency, portability of rights, and overall equity within the system.The research makes an original contribution by proposing a coherent analytical framework that explicitly links theoretical models to Moroccan specificities. It also opens avenues for future empirical research, notably on replacement rates, actuarial returns, and the internal performance of the pension scheme managed by the CMR.

JEL Classification: J26

Paper type: Theoretical Research