The current number of self-employed registered with the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) has jumped from 14,000 to 56,000.
The increase in the figure follows the introduction of the Self-employed Enrolment Drive (SEED) by the scheme a few months ago.
This was disclosed to journalists by the Director-General, Dr. John Ofori-Tenkorang, at a forum in Accra in partnership with the Trades Union Congress (TUC).
The Trades Union Congress (TUC), a stakeholder and umbrella body of workers in Ghana, teamed with the Trust to organise regional forums on the Self-employed Enrolment Drive (SEED) with self-employed and informal sector workers and groups within the TUC.
It was organised to help deepen the knowledge of leaders of informal sector affiliates of the TUC, such as the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU), the Union of Informal Workers Association (UNIWA), and the Ghana Actors Guild, on the need to sign up for the SEED and encourage them to convince their members to join and benefit from the scheme.
The meeting was held today, Monday, October 30, 2023, at the Accra Technical University.
The Director-General explained that SEED is an initiative that guarantees contributors who qualify for regular sources of income a monthly pension from old age until death and offers disability insurance to contributors in the event of invalidity, among others.
He noted that it will also provide a life policy by paying the survivors of members who pass on lump sums.
According to him, it also exempts members from paying National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) charges and, most of all, assures that every worker gets social protection.
He said, “SEED focuses on enrolling self-employed persons and workers in the informal sector on the SSNIT Scheme to contribute regularly on their full earnings.
It provides social protection in the form of partial income in old age or retirement. To ensure that self-employed persons and workers in the informal sector have social protection and a monthly pension, among others”, he added.
He noted that the initiative is making an impact because the misconception people have about SSNIT being for only public sector workers has been dispelled.
He said one of the reasons self-employed people were not registering for SSNIT was a lack of knowledge about how the scheme works.
He said that through forums and other related activities, more self-employed people are registering for the scheme.
“When SSNIT first began, the majority of contributors were public sector employees, and many people assumed it was only for public sector employees.”
But that story is changing. We have made efforts to educate Ghanaians. SSNIT was not required for self-employed people when the statute was written. However, because it was mandatory for all public sector employees, people assumed that only public sector employees were involved. That has changed, and SEED has contributed.”
By: Rashid Obodai Provencal/Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
