SSNIT Board Chair picks top award

The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Dr. Kwame Addo Kufuor, has been recognised as Outstanding Board Chairman of the Year 2019 at the 10th Ghana Entrepreneur & Corporate Executive Awards 2020.

The Award was held virtually on Saturday, 18th July 2020 on TV3, UTV and some social media platforms.

Dr. Addo Kufuor was found to have “demonstrated corporate leadership; sustained business performance, integrity, vision and business innovation in the National Pension Scheme in Ghana.”

Dr. Kwame Addo Kufuor in an interview with the media dedicated his award to the Board of Trustees, Management and Staff of the Trust. “I dedicate this award to the Board, Management and Staff of the Trust, I say thank you. This award is a testament to their hard work, team spirit and a willingness to change the narrative of the Trust. To stakeholders of the Scheme, especially pensioners, thank you. I believe that you are the reason the Trust exists and your input over the years have contributed to the sustenance of the Scheme.”

He expressed gratitude to the organisers for recognizing the work that the Board and Management have done at SSNIT.

“I congratulate the organisers of this event, the Entrepreneurs Foundation Ghana for promoting entrepreneurial excellence and business development for the past 10 years in Ghana.

“I was on retirement from public service only to be jolted out of retirement about three and a half years ago to come and serve my country again as Board Chair of SSNIT, I must say that I believe in serving my country and any opportunity to do so is a privilege.”

The Board Chairman mentioned that in the past three and half years, the Trust has made several significant strides.

He said that after the assumption of Office, the Board and Management had to re-strategise and refocus the business of the Trust to position it as a credible high performing institution.

He indicated that some notable achievements were the deletion of over 12, 000 non-existent pensioners from the pension payroll saving the Trust about GHC106 Million.

He also mentioned that the Trust had saved millions of dollars as a result of the comprehensive value-for-money audit carried out on SSNIT investments to guide investment decisions by Management.

“I am particularly happy that pensioners are now paid within 16 days of submitting their pension application compared to the several weeks it previously took to pay them.”

Dr Addo Kufuor used the opportunity, “to encourage all workers especially self-employed persons to register and join the SSNIT Scheme.” According to him, old age is inevitable, and before you know it, it creeps up on you. “I’m also urging all media houses to partner SSNIT in educating the public especially workers, to prioritise their retirement needs by contributing to the SSNIT Scheme now.”

Other award winners were Founder, SAS Finance Group, Togbe Afede XIV as Overall Best Entrepreneur of the Decade and Executive Group Chairman of McDan Group, Dr. Daniel Mckorley as Outstanding Entrepreneur/CEO of the Decade.

The Awards The Ghana Entrepreneur and Corporate Executive Awards (GECEA) is organised by the Entrepreneurs Foundation of Ghana (EFG).

The event is aimed at recognising and celebrating corporate business executives and entrepreneurs who have managed successful public and private organisations in Ghana.

The Awards was under the theme – “Celebrating Ten Years of Entrepreneurial Excellence and Business Development in Ghana”.

The Guests of Honour were Indian High Commissioner, Sugandh Rajaram, US Ambassador, Stephanie Sullivan, Colombian Ambassador, Claudia Turbay Quintero, and South African High Commissioner, Lulu Xingwana.