Many South Africans who are currently approaching retirement, face the prospect of poverty in old-age, due to a lack of provision or insufficient savings during their working lives. This situation is exacerbated by the leakages caused by withdrawals before retirement, pension backed loans and constantly changing jobs.

 

pension schemes sometimes offer poor service to their members, for example via excessive fees, poor advice or poor communication. These pose a challenge to regulate and supervise efficiently.

Comprehensive social security is important because it will close the gaps that exist in South Africa's social security landscape. It will lead to a significant increase in coverage and major improvements in efficiency, service delivery, and policy-making. Comprehensive social security will be founded on the principle of social solidarity.

The Consolidated Government Paper (CGP) is a policy discussion document that spells out government's vision for improving the social security system.

The key proposals of the CGP are:

The NSSF will be run as a Pay-As-You-Go Defined Benefit fund with a 25 per cent reserve requirement. Retirement benefits will be determined by duration of a worker's contributions, wages over the course of their career, and a guaranteed accrual rate. Risk benefits will also be determined a pre-set formula based on a worker's final salary, but will not be dependent on a contributions.  

All workers and their families will benefit from the proposed reforms. Low-income workers who previously were not covered by any social security arrangements will notice the most substantial change, but the reforms outlined in the CGP will lead to enhanced income security across the entire workforce and improved service delivery from all social security entities, be they public or private.

The pre-existing rights of current members will be protected. Some of the present schemes that do not meet the required standards will have to close, and their members transferred to the NSSF. Other pension schemes will have to merge to reduce costs. All pension schemes will need to be evaluated and accredited before they can operate so that they provide adequate protection to members.

Current employees will retain their existing rights and savings. They will, however, have to participate in the NSSF when it is implemented.

The rights and benefits of retired workers will not be affected.

All future employees will be expected to participate and contribute to the NSSF.  

The proposed social security reforms will improve income protection for workers and employers in the event of workplace injuries and accidents, thereby allowing enterprises to operate in a sustainable environment. Comprehensive social security will compliment employment creation and skills development initiaitives.

 

The reforms are likely to raise South Africa's level of household savings, which in turn will provide the country with more resources for investment in infrastructure, new industries and the creation of new jobs.

 

Neither social security reform nor the institutions it creates will make huge demands on the country's finances or on workers. In fact, the reforms will save costs by streamlining administration and eliminating duplication, thereby freeing up resources to provide better coverage and higher benefits. As far as individual workers are concerned, their contributions will provide them or their families with a fair income in retirement or in the event of that they die or become disabled before retirement.

All employees in the formal sector will enjoy pension and insurance coverage under the National Social Security Fund, including those who were previously not covered. Employees who are in the informal sector will also be encouraged to partcipate and contribute to the NSSF scheme.

Comprehensive social security is linked to National Health Insurance insofar as both of these schemes provide protection against medical costs. Whereas National Health Insurance serves as a medical insurance scheme, social security will provide income support in the event of incapacity due to illness. The tewo schemes complement each other in preventing social reversals in the event of illness or accidental injury of a breadwinner. The two schemes are also likely to be financed in a different way; social security reform will not require higher taxes.

Reforming a country's social security system is a complex and long process that requires patience and detailed work on the part of government, workers, employers and the general population. Many stakeholders will be affected and their concerns need to be addressed. The reforms will not be introduced overnight but will have to be appropriately sequenced and tailored so that they do not cause personal or institutional disruption. It is envisaged that the reforms will be implemented in 12 months' time and phased in over a period of 10 years.  

Government will ensure that the social security reforms- and in particular the National Social Security Fund- will be sustainable over the long term and will not have an adverse impact on the economy. Automatic balancing mechanisms will be incorporated into the Fund's rules to change the system's parameters in response to any demographic or economic changes that threaten its solvency.