Financial institutions are intensifying moves aimed at bringing on board the 85 percent of people in the informal sector who have not yet signed on to any pension scheme.
This comes at a time when the National Pension Regulatory Authority(NPRA) has also initiated measures to encourage high participation of Corporate Trustees to maximize the coverage of persons in the informal sector by introducing incentives.
The incentives which were announced earlier this year include the reduction of some licensing fees and the waving off of others to increase funds available to trustees.
Some of the fees reduced include; individual Trustee Informal Sector Licensing fee which has been slashed from GHS500 to GHS500.
Also, the Informal Sector Scheme Registration Fee has been reduced GHS5000 to GHS1000.
Speaking to Citi Business News at the sidelines of the signing ceremony between Peoples Pension Trust, Dusk Capital and Vodafone Cash , the CEO of Peoples Pension Trust, Samuel Bediako Waterberg said his company is keen on addressing the issues that prevent people in the informal sector from signing onto a pension plan.
“You don’t have to go to the bank and fill a form to pay just five cedis, with your Vodafone cash you can just with a click of a button pay for your pension, this scheme is governed by the NPRA, so the government is also involved”, Mr. Waterberg said.
Touching on the credibility of the companies involved, Mr. Waterberg stated that the firms have excellent records.
“Vodafone is tried and tested so people can trust it same with Peoples Pension Trust. We have support from some of the biggest pension companies in the world supporting us. Dusk Capital is licensed by NPRA so all the parties involved are trust worthy,” he said.
“ People will also have the chance to check their balance on their phones in a very simple way, so with partnership you can pay your pension, check your balance, and also communicate with us no matter where you are in the country,” he added
The three companies have entered into a partnership targeted at increasing informal sector workers to enroll on pensions.
The partnership between the companies aim to address the challenges of Trust, Accessibility and Collection of funds
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By: Anita Arthur/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
