Put contributions in high yielding portfolios - Labour consultant to SSNIT

Labour consultant Austin Gamey has raised concerns on the need to invest funds contributed to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) in entities with good returns in order to ensure better yields and subsequent payouts to beneficiaries.

His comment comes on the back of the 2021 upward review of monthly pensions by 10 per cent.

Speaking to Citi News, Mr Gamey said funds must be smartly invested so as to attract good yields for beneficiaries.

“I’m speaking in the interest of us, the contributors of SSNIT. SSNIT cannot conjure money from anywhere, and so the monies should not be misused, should not be misapplied, should not be placed in portfolios that are not high yielding.

If they are giving you 10% in a rebased economy, where are you, what can you buy and do with it? With GH¢334.49, you can’t pay your rent, you can’t do anything. Because this class of people cannot build their own houses, and that is the bottom line,” he explained.

The labour consultant also added that the current payouts are not enough to sustain many pensioners.

“We are talking about a nation that has a rebased economy. If you are talking about a rebased economy, the effects are quite huge and therefore SSNIT will have to up their game. And it’s up to the board people, who are also populated by the working people to ensure that they protect the interest of the contributors and not making it look as if SSNIT is part and parcel of the government, it’s not. So we really need to be very careful as a nation.”

A statement issued and signed by SSNIT indicates that the current pensioners on SSNIT Pension as of December 2020 will have their pensions increased by a fixed rate of 9.34 percent.

Accordingly, pensioners on the current minimum monthly pension of GH¢300.00 will have their pensions increased to GH¢334.49.

It added that all fresh pensioners from January 2021 will receive a new minimum monthly pension of GH¢300.00.