Gov’t to support whose NIS contributions were unremitted

-$10b earmarked to undertake this programme – Jagdeo

A massive $10 billion is earmarked to support Guyanese who did not meet the criteria relating to their National Insurance Scheme (NIS) contributions, as part of a series of measures to be rolled out by the government this year.

Recently, President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali announced a one-time injection for the insurance company towards persons who face challenges in benefitting from their entitlements.

During a press conference at Freedom House in Georgetown, People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo expounded further, revealing that there are thousands of Guyanese who believe they are eligible for pension, but do not meet the 75o contribution mark.  

“Some of those people were not to be blamed because many times their employers never deducted or deducted and never transmitted their deductions to the NIS on their behalf…They were not aware of this until they retired and then sought to collect their pension,” he informed reporters on Thursday.

According to him, a lot of these individuals are pensioners who did not receive a single benefit from the NIS. And so, the $10 billion will provide a one-time lump sum payment, benefitting these thousands of Guyanese.

“Hopefully it would offset their contributions that they have made over the many years to the country and to the NIS itself,” he adding, expressing pity on the situation.

At this stage, Dr Jagdeo said the government is examining different models to ensure the initiative is implemented in a fair manner. Once that process is completed, an announcement will be made, then eligible Guyanese will begin receiving their payments.

Meanwhile, to ensure the insurance scheme is able to pay pension and benefits in the long-run, the government will be making a big cash injection into the NIS. He recalled that the NIS has been paying benefits while operating on a deficit and the government is filling the gap to prevent this.

He went on to explain, “That puts the fund at risk. So… when all of you retire, you would also be able to receive your pension and the NIS will not go bankrupt.”

Addressing requests in NIS pension increase, Jagdeo noted firstly, efforts are being made to preserve NIS so pensioners can continue to receive their entitlements. Once the deficit is improved, an increase can possibly be facilitated.

Meanwhile, the government has increased pension for government workers, from $20,500 in 2020, to $36,000 in 2024. The government aims to increase this by $41,000 in 2025.