The National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) has renewed its call on companies to ensure the payment of the pensions of their workers.
The call comes at a time the regulator is keen on increasing the number of informal workers to enroll onto the nation’s pension scheme.
The Authority, early this year, introduced incentives in the pension space such as 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.
According to the regulator, one way to gain the trust of informal workers is to ensure timely payment of pension funds to contributors. This it believes will further increase the number of people on pension schemes.
In an interview with Citi Business News, the Manager for Corporate Affairs of the National Pensions Regulatory Authority, Emmanuel Awuku Dagbanu said enhanced monitoring between the Financial Intelligence Center and the National Pensions Regulatory Authority is being done on a day to day basis to ensure the security of monies from contributors.
“The regulator monitors the activities of all the service providers and as we speak now we have our team to make sure that the regulated entities comply with the law so on a daily basis the activities are monitored.”
“Even as you are aware, the money does not come to us but goes straight to the custodian and we have this memorandum of understanding between the financial intelligence center and the NPRA therefore when the money gets to the bank, it cannot stay there for more that forty eight hours without being invested that is contrary to the law and you can be punished for that and they all know this,” he explained to Citi Business News.
Mr. Dagbanu added that the NPRA would ensure that events that occurred in the microfinance industry resulting in people losing their monies, does not recur.
“NPRA monitors the activities to make sure that issues concerning money which for example happened in some of these savings and loans institutions will not happen. So we try as much as possible to make sure that the industry is well regulated because pension can be somebody’s last resort and the NPRA knows that.”
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By: Anita Arthur/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
