THE Social Security System (SSS) remains open to pension hikes beyond scheduled adjustments but these will depend on the fund’s performance.
“We’ll evaluate it by next year,” SSS President and CEO Robert Joseph de Claro told reporters last week.
He said the agency had yet to make any decision on extending or granting another round of pension increases once the current adjustment period ends in 2027.
The state-owned pension fund introduced its first-ever annual pension increase in 2025, under which retirement and disability pensions will rise by 10 percent annually from 2025 to 2027 and survivor pensions increase by five percent each year over the same period.
It advanced the implementation of the second tranche of the Pension Reform Program (PRP) starting last month from September. The June to August rollout, de Claro said, will have a P6.5-billion impact.
While discussions on future pension adjustments remain preliminary, the SSS chief said the pension fund was developing new programs aimed at expanding member benefits.
Among these is a proposed solar financing initiative, which aims to help around 100,000 households finance the installation of solar panels through SSS loans.
Under the proposal, qualified members can borrow between P300,000 and P400,000, payable over four to seven years, with interest rates set slightly above the prevailing Treasury bill rate as required under the Social Security Act.
De Claro said the agency was earmarking roughly P40 billion for the program, targeted for a September announcement and implementation either toward the end of this year or in early 2027.
