Young people urged to take interest in pension reform

A local actuary has expressed concern over the lack of interest shown by young people in matters relating to pension reform and has urged them to start saving now.

Judith Veira was one of the panellists at a discussion on pension reform hosted by the National Insurance Service (NIS) on August 30.

At the start of her presentation, Veira noted the poor turn out of young people at the event.

“As I looked around the room, I was a little bit disheartened… I didn’t really see a lot of young faces,” she observed.

While many young people were absent from the forum last week, Veira noted that they are the ones whose lives will be impacted by pension reform. She made a call for youth leaders to take the issue of pension reform “to heart.”

Hoping that the message reaches them, Veira encouraged young Vincentians to “start saving now.”

“It will accumulate, it will pay off in the long run.”

“You will retire, there is going to come a time when you do not have that salary coming in, so…take an interest in your pension plan, whether it be from your employer, or from the NIS.”

During her presentation, the experienced actuary also commended NIS Executive Director Stewart Haynes for his strategy in keeping the Vincentian public informed in matters relating to the NIS and pension reform.

Speaking at the opening of the forum, Chairman of the NIS Board, Lennox Bowman, stated that the NIS

is a properly run organization. He stressed that the NIS remains the best investment among workers and expressed the hope that all Vincentians would come together and embrace pension reform.

The Chairman remarked that the panel discussion is an integral part of NIS’s social dialogue with stakeholders on pension reform. Promising that the NIS would continue its public education, Bowman said “when there is a lack of understanding, fear will find fertile ground to grow.”

In his presentation, actuary Derek Osborne said concern is growing over the gap between expenditure and contributions in the NIS.

He also noted that the NIS has to find a way to get self employed persons to make contributions.

According to the actuary, another challenge for the NIS is that pensioners are living longer; 18 per cent of pensioners go past the age of 90 years.

Director of the NIS Stewart Haynes and Deputy Governor of the ECCB, Dr Valda Henry were also among the panelists. The panel discussion was held under the theme “Embracing pension reform to secure our future together.”