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ANKARA, March 18 (Reuters) - Turkey's social security deficit will widen 66 percent to 50 billion lira ($29 billion) this year, state-run Anatolian news agency reported Economy Minister Mehmet Simsek as saying on Wednesday. In a speech in the western Turkish city of Eskisehir, Simsek said the state of the country's social security system, burdened by a lowering of retirement ages in past decades.
Turkey's jobless rate hit an record high of 13.6 percent in November-January period, data showed on Monday, reducing the premiums collected from workers and boosting unemployment benefits.
Simsek said lowering the retirement age to 38 in 1990s was a vital mistake and damaged the Turkish public finances. He said Turkey's social security system will continue to post deficits for many years.
"Turkey's social security system will not reach a balance even in 2070. Women retired at the age of 44 last year in Turkey. There is no such thing in any major country of the world, where retirement ages are either 65 or 67," Simsek said.
Official data showed that the Treasury transfers to the social security institutions stood at 95.813 million lira in January alone, 28 percent up from last year.
"Turkey's social security system is bankrupt," he said.
The government passed an International Monetary Fund-backed social security reform last year, which raises retirement ages gradually and obliges workers to pay higher premiums. (Writing by Daren Butler and Selcuk Gokoluk; Editing by Ron Askew)