The management of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) has told the leadership of organised labour to make retirement security a shared national responsibility.
As partners, SSNIT said, organised labour remains central to achieving sustainable retirement security.
The Director-General of SSNIT, Kwesi Afreh Biney, said this at a stakeholder engagement with organised labour in Accra on Tuesday.
He indicated that organised labour can support by: Promoting pension literacy, actively championing and participating in policy discussions and reforms; encouraging compliance and timely payment of contributions; advocating for workers in emerging forms of employment; partnering with SSNIT to expand pension coverage and strengthen confidence in the Scheme; and ensuring accountability and sustainability of the Scheme
Kwesi Afreh Biney further said that SSNIT is targeting 2.8 million active members by 2028 as part of measures to expand pension coverage and strengthen the long-term sustainability of the national pension scheme.
The engagement was intended to update labour on the performance and direction of SSNIT, while providing an opportunity for stakeholders to identify areas where SSNIT could improve.
The event brought together some members of the board of trustees of SSNIT, management and staff of both SSNIT and the Ghana Federation of Labour and the Trades Union Congress, Ghana (TUC).
In attendance were the Chairman of the SSNIT Board of Trustees, Nana Ansah Sasraku III; the Chief of Bruku Traditional Area and member of the SSNIT Board, Nana Dr Adu Sarkodee; the National Chairman of TUC, Bernard Owusu; the Deputy Secretary-General of TUC, Dr Kwabena Nyarko Otoo; the Deputy Secretary-General, the Ghana Federation of Labour, Kenneth Koomson, and SSNIT Public Affairs Manager, Lord Koramoa.
Making a presentation on “SSNIT’s Strategic Priorities and Key Initiatives”, Mr Biney said active membership had increased to 2,179,295 as of the end of last month, from about 820,000 in 1991, with the Trust’s three-year corporate strategy targeting an average addition of 300,000 members annually to reach approximately 2.8 million by 2028.
The Director-General of SSNIT identified the informal sector as a key area for expanding coverage, stating that more than 80 per cent of the country’s workforce operates in that sector.
He said changes in the world of work, including digital employment, self-employment, entrepreneurship, remote work and greater labour mobility, required SSNIT to adopt new approaches to reaching and serving workers.
“Currently, we have 2.17 million plus active members as at the end of July. If you take a look at our corporate strategy for the next three years, the goal is to increase membership on average by 300,000 each year. So, by 2028, the goal is to have about 2.8 million active members,” he said.