Derrama Magisterial and the ILO present results of their alliance for teachers’ social security

Lima (ILO News) - Derrama Magisterial (DM) and the ILO presented the results of the Technical Assistance Programme jointly developed between 2019 and 2025, which has strengthened the governance, sustainability, and quality of DM’s services. The event brought together representatives of the teaching profession and social security experts to reflect on the progress achieved and the challenges ahead.

Thomas Wissing, Deputy Director of the ILO Office for the Andean Countries, highlighted the relevance of discussing social security at a time marked by the end of the demographic dividend and an ageing population, underscoring the special role played by Derrama Magisterial as the teachers’ social security institution.

Those who dedicate their lives to education deserve dignified social security that provides them with peace of mind during their working life and in retirement

said Thomas Wissing, Deputy Director of the ILO Office for the Andean Countries

For her part, Professor Olga Morán Araujo, Chair of DM’s Board of Directors, emphasized that cooperation with the ILO has made it possible to achieve tangible progress for the institution and its members.

This alliance has given us clear tools to modernize management and better respond to teachers’ expectations. We have strengthened our institutional framework and continue building trust within our teaching community

stated Olga Morán Araujo, Chair of the DM Board

Key achievements of this process include:

• Stronger governance: adoption of good governance codes, internal regulations, and risk management policies, aligned with ISSA international guidelines.
• Financial sustainability: long-term projections ensuring the viability of benefits until 2053.
• Professionalized leadership: training plans and a competency matrix to strengthen senior management.
• Teacher-oriented benefits: surveys capturing teachers’ perceptions and expectations, leading to proposals for new health, education, and welfare services.
• Digital transformation: a roadmap that integrates technological innovation with DM’s dual identity as a social security and welfare institution.
• Sense of belonging: reinforced recognition of DM as teachers’ collective institution.

Pablo Casalí, ILO Social Security Specialist for the Andean Countries, provided a balance of progress and emphasized that the next steps should focus on consolidating DM’s legal stability, strengthening its role as a complementary social security system, improving communication with affiliates, updating the benefits matrix, promoting a culture of social security among teachers, and advancing digital transformation.

Casalí also reaffirmed the ILO’s commitment to continue accompanying Derrama Magisterial in this process..

The shared vision is clear: to continue strengthening the institution, ensuring its sustainability, and expanding the well-being of teachers and their families throughout Peru

said Pablo Casalí, ILO Social Security Specialist for the Andean Countries

Expert voices on social security in Peru

The event also featured a panel of specialists who provided diverse perspectives on social security in Peru.

Víctorhugo Montoya, former Head of the National Pension Office (ONP), highlighted that Derrama Magisterial is a “sui generis and innovative” institution that complements the national pension system and has been able to move forward with the ILO’s support. He underlined that the pending challenge is to consolidate a culture of social security among teachers.

Christian Sánchez, former Minister of Labour, also emphasized that DM has been a unique experience. On the state of social security in the country, he recalled that any reform of the pension system must go hand in hand with labour market reform, as both processes are deeply interconnected.

From an international perspective, Luisa Carmona, Specialist from the ILO’s Universal Social Protection Department in Geneva, put DM’s progress into global perspective. She noted that ILO international standards set out non-negotiable guiding principles for any social security system, such as State responsibility, social solidarity, and participatory management.

Derrama Magisterial plays a valuable role as a complementary mechanism that fosters foresight among teachers and strengthens a culture of savings to achieve greater protection in old age. But it should not replace public social security schemes

concluded Luisa Carmona, Specialist from the ILO’s Universal Social Protection Department in Geneva.