Around six out of 10 Swedes are happy for their pension investments to contribute to civil preparedness, with residents of the Stockholm area most supportive of this idea, research from KPA Pension has revealed.

The survey found that both men and women were supportive of their pension money being invested in civil preparedness, with 68 percent of men and 53 percent of women supportive of this idea.

The findings were published as part of KPA's report, Pension capital in preparedness, which found that several thousand billion kronor will be needed to strengthen the supply chain, reduce the climate footprint and adapt societies to the changing climate.

It also warned that NATO membership means new requirements regarding, among other things, healthcare and drinking water supply.

However, the report suggested that pension capital can contribute to society's civil preparedness through investments in energy supply, water supply and communication, with total pension capital in Sweden amounting to approximately SEK 8,100bn.

Whilst the report acknowledged that the majority of this is invested abroad, it pointed out that a large part is invested in Sweden, making pension capital an important player in the Swedish financial market.

Indeed, Folksam Group chief economist, Marcus Svedberg, noted that pension capital is already an "active source" of financing for climate change adaptation, with KPA Pension also invested in municipalities that are implementing climate adaptation measures.

"Contingency investments have a long-term perspective that suits the management of occupational pensions,” Svedberg continued.

Adding to this, KPA Pension CEO, Camilla Larsson, said: "Investments in climate transition, climate adaptation and better civil preparedness benefit our customers and are good examples of how we create returns for our customers while their occupational pensions contribute to a more sustainable and robust society."

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