Minister of Labour and Social Security, Brenda Mwika Tambatamba has called on Members of Parliament to take a leading role in educating their constituents on the ongoing pension reforms.
Speaking when she officially closed the Stakeholders’ forum on pension reforms with the Parliamentary Committee on National Economy, Trade and Labour Matters, and other Members of Parliament from different Committees, Ms. Tambatamba said the purpose of these reforms is to secure the financial viability of workers throughout the entire life cycle.
She said that many workers face a time in life when their strength to work diminishes, making it crucial to build strong, reliable income generating businesses after retirement.
“We must ensure that when their bodies can no longer carry the burden of labour, their years of service continue to provide for them through meaningful retirement benefits and old-age benefits,” Ms Tambatamba said.
The Minister highlighted that the reforms are designed to boost worker productivity and economic stability by giving citizens confidence that their contributions today will translate into dependable support in future.
She urged Members of Parliament to become advocates of pension reforms, to help the public understand how the reforms work and how workers will benefit from them.
“You are the closest link to the people. It is important that you explain these reforms clearly so that workers and families know the long-term value of contributing to a sustainable pension system,” Ms Tambatamba said.
She also announced that the Ministry will intensify its engagements with Members of Parliament to ensure they fully grasp the objectives, mechanisms, and impact of the pension reforms, to enhance the national campaign to build a more secure, inclusive, and future ready social protection system.
Kamfinsa Memeber of Parliament Christopher Kangombe pledged to play an active role in championing the pension reforms.
The proposed reforms include increasing the NAPSA income replacement rate from 40 percent to 45 percent, and raising the NAPSA minimum pension from 20 percent to 25 percent of the national average earnings.They also allow the 20 percent pre-retirement benefit to be accessible at the point of retirement as a lump sum, with considerations underway to explore the feasibility of increasing it from 20 percent to 25 percent without affecting the adequacy of the residual monthly pension or the sustainability of the scheme. A Second-Tier Pension for Public Workers. such as teachers, police officers and health personnel employed after 2000 who currently only contribute to NAPSA, will be allowed to also contribute to the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF) while workers under local authorities and utility companies will contribute to Local Authorities Superannuation Fund (LASF).In addition, the reforms propose introducing voluntary additional contributory sub-schemes under NAPSA, the Public Pension Scheme Fund (PSPF) and the Local Authorities’ Superannuation Fund (LASF) to enhance benefits that can be taken as a lump sum.Furthermore, the proposed reform to the Public Service Pension Fund is aimed at raising public service workers’ pensions by adding a 20 percent income replacement ratio to the 40 percent provided by NAPSA, bringing the total to at least a 60 percent income replacement ratio at retirement.With the enhancement of the NAPSA income replacement rate, civil servants will ultimately be entitled to a combined 65 percent income replacement rate.