PUTRAJAYA (Bernama): Malaysia needs to study the practices in other countries, particularly developed nations, on how to care for its ageing population, said Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

"We are going into that area where there is an ageing population. So how do you look after them?

"It is not just a question of giving accommodation but to keep them active because if they're not active they sort of fade away," he added.

The Prime Minister said most developed societies provide some form of financial aid to help senior citizens who are unable to earn a living.

"That can be done by way of insurance contributions while they are still working... it's almost like the Employees Provident Fund (EPF).

"However, the EPF amount is barely sufficient to cover for a long-term period as old people now have a longer life expectancy," Dr Mahathir said in an interview with The Third Age Media Association and Bernama News Channel (BNC) recently.

The full interview will be aired over BNC Saturday (Sept 15) at 11.30pm  and will be repeated at 11.30pm on Sunday (Sept 16), 5pm (Sept 17), 12 noon and 5pm (Sept 22), 5pm (Sept 23), 9am (Sept 29) and 5pm (Sept 30).

The life expectancy of Malaysians is at an average of 75 years, and therefore, a person needs savings to last between 15 and 20 years post-retirement.

A study earlier this year conducted by the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI) revealed less than 25% of working people interviewed believe they will have enough money to support themselves through their retirement years.

The majority said they cannot afford to retire.

According to EPF, for a retiree to be able to spend at least RM800 a month for the next two decades (until he reaches 75), he or she must at least have RM196,800 or RM200,000.

Dr Mahathir said a study had to be carried out in that area to determine how long a person's life savings can last. - Bernama