June 2023
27Jun

Kenya govt mulls mandatory contributions to retirement medical insurance schemes

The Kenyan government says it will review the current framework for post-retirement medical insurance schemes to make contributions to them mandatory by members and sponsors. The goal is to sustain access to healthcare services by retirees. The plan is part of proposals contained in the draft National Retirement Benefits Policy by the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA. The draft was released for public feedback last week, according to a report by Business Daily Africa. A post-retirement medical scheme can be set up as...

June 27, 2023
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May 2023
10May

Kenya. ICEA Life Assurance gets regulatory approval to manage NSSF pensions

ICEA Lion Life Assurance has become the latest private pension provider to obtain the approval of the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) to manage NSSF contributions by employees earning more than Sh18,000, also known as Tier II contributions. The underwriter who is part of the ICEA Lion Group has made the disclosure as it lures employers who opt out of the NSSF as a custodian of the higher-tier pension contributions. “Our team is dedicated to assisting employers with the opt-out procedure. With...

May 10, 2023
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April 2023
20Apr

Kenya. Retirements Benefits Authority Woos The Jua Kali Sector

The Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) is eyeing the jua kali sector as it begins to roll out its services to counties, RBA Deputy Director Peter Ngunyi has said. Ngunyi who was speaking during the launch of RBA service desk at the Nyeri Huduma Centre, said that in addition to bringing services closer to retirees in the counties, they were also looking to tap into the informal sector which constitutes 80 per cent of the labour market. He further explained that the...

April 20, 2023
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March 2023
30Mar

Kenya. MPs revive attempt to raise pension for former members

Parliament has revived a Bill rejected by former President Uhuru Kenyatta to increase pension for members who retired between 1984 and 2001. The Bill republished by Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa shows it will cost taxpayers an extra Sh180.9 million every year to keep former MPs who retired between July 1, 1984, and January 1, 2001, comfortable. The Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) heard that should the Parliamentary Pensions (Amendment) Bill 2022 sail through, the former legislators will earn a monthly pension...

March 30, 2023
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February 2023
27Feb

Kenya. Private firms to battle NSSF for new billions in pension

Private financial services firms are angling for a share of billions from enhanced pension contributions following the enactment of the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) Act 2013. The implementation of the Act has unlocked billions of shillings under tier II contributions which have been opened to other pension funds apart from NSSF. An employer can choose to send second-tier NSSF contributions to a private scheme after remitting tier-one deductions to the state-owned fund. According to estimates seen by the Business Daily from...

February 27, 2023
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21Feb

Kenya. Administrator welcomes NSSF contribution rise, urges simple opt-out process

Pension administrator Enwealth has welcomed the move to increase retirement savings contributions through the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) Act 2013. Early this February, the Court of Appeal quashed a judgment by an Employment and Labour Relations Court that declared the NSSF Act 2013 unconstitutional. While the Act recommended a monthly deduction of Sh200 to Sh600 for lower earners, top earners will be deducted Sh320 to Sh1,080 on a graduated scale. Increased contributions seek to ensure financial security for the retirees. However, the...

February 21, 2023
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10Feb

Kenya. Pensions Department To Fast-Track Processing Of Pensions

Retiring public servants will receive their pension within 90 days after exiting from service if a plan by the Pensions Department in the Treasury and Planning Ministry to fast-track the processing of pension materializes. Already, the department has deployed its officers at the Teachers Service Commission and Vigilance House to help process pension for retiring teachers and police officers and the same is expected to be replicated at the Headquarters of all ministries, officials have said. This, the officials said, will...

February 10, 2023
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02Feb

Most Kenyans lack a saving scheme – RBA

Close to 14 million workers mainly in the informal sector do not have any form of savings, according to the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA). The authority is warns that this will have far reaching consequences in future as the number of poor retirees with no savings hits the streets. According to Jackson Ngotho, a director with RBA, close to 13.9m Kenyans have no form of savings towards their retirement, the majority being in the informal sector. He noted that of the 3.5...

February 2, 2023
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January 2023
30Jan

Concern as millions with no savings in Kenya face old age poverty

About 13.9 million Kenyans have no form of retirement savings scheme, and the majority of them are in the informal sector. According to data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), there were about 17.4 million people in the formal and informal sectors as of the year 2020.“The labour market is skewed towards informal employment at 83 per cent. This is a time bomb and indicating that most Kenyans will retire poor,” the report notes. The report was presented during...

January 30, 2023
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12Jan

Kenyan Pension Funds To Intensify Regional Investments In 2023

The Kenya Pension Funds Investment Consortium (KEPFIC) will this year mobilize billions in investment from local pension funds for regional opportunities. KEPFIC Secretariat in a public statement said it is looking for bankable projects that are backed by strong environmental, social and governance principles. “KEPFIC is releasing this Request for Proposals (RFP) to invite investment proposals from project sponsors and fund managers that are looking to raise capital from Kenyan pension funds for regional opportunities,” KEPFIC announced in public statement today. KEPFIC...

January 12, 2023
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