By Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo
The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) as at December 2021, had 1,536 invalidity pensioners on its payroll. The Chief Actuary of SSNIT, Joseph Poku who dropped the hint said over the same, the Trust paid more than GHC 18.4 million to those on invalidity pension. Mr. Poku made the announcement at a stakeholder meeting in Wa to discuss ways to extend coverage of basic social security schemes to the self-employed.
GBC’s Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo reports that the event drew people from different backgrounds ranging from hairdressing, blacksmithing, mobile phone business, farming, smock weaving to transport business.
Invalidity pension is paid monthly to a member who is declared permanently unfit to work as a result of physical or mental disability regardless of the fellow’s age. Mr. Joseph Poku pointed out that one must fulfill two conditions before getting a pension, which are qualification by age the number of monthly contributions that are made to the scheme.
“The minimum age to qualify for pension is 55 years and the minimum number of monthly contributions you need is 180 months.” He indicated that 180 months contribution into a pension right of 37.5℅. That is what you start with, it doesn’t end there. If you contribute more than 180 months or 15 years, every additional year’s contribution (every additional 12 months) that you get gives you an additional 1.125℅.”
Mr. Poku dilated on invalidity pension which he described as the most generous of all benefits. He stated:”The most generous of all the benefits is the invalidity pension. This invalidity pension you don’t even finance, it is like a bonus as a worker or a contributor. Why am I saying so? You only need to contribute just for one year within the last three years before you become invalid.
If I say invalid, it means you can no longer work for the rest of your life. You just have to come to SSNIT and say that I’m involved in an accident or I have a stroke or that, I’ve gone blind or I have this or that and because of that I cannot work anymore. Then SSNIT will constitute a medical team to assess your condition once your doctor says you cannot work anymore and if they are certified that you can no longer work for the rest of your life…”
Mr. Poku underscored the benefits that the SSNIT Scheme has and entreated the people at the meeting to assist as peer educators in promoting the scheme and the value it offers to contributors.
Client Services Officer at the Wa branch office of SSNIT, Henrietta Ananga explained the issues tabled at the event in Waali for a better understanding for those who have limited working knowledge of English. A number of the participants expressed interest in being part of the event, saying it has served as an eye-opener for them to join up the SSNIT Scheme.
Staff of SSNIT were on hand at a workstation set up on the sidelines of a meeting to help members of the scheme to update their records and request social security statements.