$370,000 needed for retirement fund

By Jung Min-ho

A two-member Korean household needs about 400 million won ($370,000) after retirement, according to a new study.

The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (KIHSA) said Friday that a household of two retirees, aged 65 years or older, needs 403,220,000 won on average until they die. This works out as a monthly allowance of 1,530,000 won.

To calculate the sum, the KIHSA said it considered various factors, such as gender, average life expectancies, levels of education and whether people have their own place to live in.

The results are an alarming indicator for the nation, which has the highest poverty rate for its elderly population among OECD member countries.

Less than a third of senior citizens receive the state pension; and most of them get less than 200,000 won a month. A basic old-age pension plan was set up in 2013 to provide an additional 200,000 won per month for the poorest 70 percent.

Yet few think that this amount of money is enough for elderly people to make ends meet.

In 2011, more than 4,000 Koreans over the age of 65 committed suicide.