An important consideration in planning for retirement is the level of income you will need and where the income will come from. Most people have unrealistic expectations as to the level of pension they will receive in retirement. This explains why in Rwanda today many mumble at the benefits paid by Rwanda Social Security Board.

The RSSB pension arrangement is defined benefit and you can know at onset the level of pension benefits you may receive at any time should you leave or retire. A quick look and comparative practice in the East Africa Community region will reveal more shocking revelations for Kenya and Uganda both of which have defined contribution schemes. However, whereas in Uganda the aggregate contribution to the national social security fund is 15 per cent, Kenya’s is a fixed negligible amount that in most cases works to several decimal percentage points. Tanzania, Burundi and South Sudan all have defined benefit schemes with verifying contribution rates. Tanzania tops the list of high contributions at aggregate of 20 per cent, followed by South Sudan at 15 per cent with Burundi at 10 per cent.

Considering that the level of benefits do not vary significantly, it is not realistic to expect the RSSB to offer any reasonable benefits as further improvement to the current benefit formula may only mean more burden to younger employees. It is important to note that whereas there is need for further prudence in the management of the scheme assets to realise superior investment returns, the same do not have a direct bearing on the level of benefits paid today.

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