On Thursday, 20 June 2024, at the Institute of Public Finance, Ljubica Mežnarić (MD at the University Hospital Centre Zagreb) and Ana Mežnarić (graduate student at the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb) presented the article on potential investments of pension funds in long-term care for the elderly, which was published in the journal Public Sector Economics. 

Starting with a pronounced trend of population aging, the authors analyse problems in the long-term care system for the elderly in Croatia. The homes managed by the central and local governments are experiencing financial losses and their numbers are stagnating, while at the same time, the number of privately-owned homes is increasing, although they, too, face numerous challenges.

Citizens are obliged to pay part of their income to pension funds, so they have a large amount of funds at their disposal. However, their investments are strictly regulated by law and they cannot invest in real estate. To effectively direct funds towards better care for the elderly population, it is necessary to adapt the existing system.

The results indicate that pension funds are interested in investing, but improving the elder care home system first is necessary. This would open up the possibility of pension fund investments, better utilization of collected funds and better care and living conditions for aging adults.

The presentation was moderated by Marijana Bađun from the Institute of Public Finance.