Yesterday, I came a across an online article that talks about how women need to recognize the unique challenges they face when it comes to retirement and to start saving and investing as early as possible to overcome them. Basically, it says that women need work harder (and smarter) than men when it comes to saving (and investing) for their future.

Here’s a rundown of the factors why women end up accumulating fewer assets and should be saving money even more aggressively than men.

#1 Women live longer than men.

That means they must provide for more years in retirement than their male counterparts.

According to the World Health Organization, women residing in the Philippines typically live until age 72, which is 6.7 years longer than a man residing in the Philippines whose average life expectancy is 65.3 years. That translates into 6.7 years more of living expenses!

While living longer seems like a good thing, it’s not necessarily living healthier -it could also represent additional medical and long-term care expenses. Also, they must consider the fact if their spouse dies before them, the death can deplete the couple’s retirement savings.

#2 Women work fewer years.

In the Philippines, while women seem to be slightly earning more than men in the Philippines, they are more likely to “play and pause” within the labor force because they are divided between household and family obligations and the need to generate income. Because they earn less, women often are unable to contribute more to their savings.

For example, women are more likely to take time off work once they get pregnant, or to bring up children or care for family members.

#3 Women tend to be risk averse when it comes to investments.

Majority of married women actively participate or take the leading role in managing family finances. However, they tend to avoid riskier assets like stocks and choose cash savings or bonds instead. Women may invest their money this way because they have less access to financial education.

What can women do about it?

How can they start saving better for their future?

Save, Invest & Start Young!

Above are reasons that place women at a disadvantage when it comes to having enough money for retirement. The bottom line is that in order to make up for the difference in earnings, and longer life spans, it is crucial for women may to simply START EARLY ON TO SAVE AND INVEST MORE. The sooner you can do it, the better. It’s much more difficult, the older you get.

There are a number of steps YOU can follow when planning for a comfortable retirement.

Start with a budget. Have a plan in place for your money. Having a budget can help you identify which funds can be diverted for retirement.
Get good advice. Learning about investments and long-term planning can help women feel more comfortable with riskier – yet potentially more rewarding investments. A financial planner is an excellent source of information and guidance to sort through the many choices available.
Save and Invest. Carefully consider how much risk you are willing to take in exchange for the potential to earn higher returns. Historically, equity investments have provided higher returns over the long term than less risky investments like money markets and short term bonds.
Consider looking into insurance products that provide living benefits in the form of guaranteed cash benefits and dividends. You can use these cash benefits as your pension allowance during retirement years.