By Funmi Komolafe & Victor Ahiuma-Young

No fewer than 23,482 employers have keyed into the Employees Compensation Scheme, ECS, regarded as a major step towards implementation of social insurance aimed at, among others, rehabilitation of workers who sustain injuries at work and payment of compensation for permanent disability or death.

ECS is managed by the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, NSITF.

Speaking on the advent of social security scheme in Nigeria, MD/CEO of NSITF, Munir Abubakar, who lauded President Goodluck Jonathan for introducing the scheme, said government before now, associated the scheme with wastage of resources.

According to him,   “Although in the past, the issue of funding social security had always scared governments, thinking that investment in this area is wasteful; the present administration of President Goodluck Jonathan has realized that social security is not a social cost but an investment in people and the state, with attendant benefits like poverty reduction or eradication or prevention, improved quality of work and life, national social cohesion and peace, nation building and state security.

Social security

The administration has therefore made a paradigm shift away from the age-long belief that social security is costly and not affordable and has taken a bold step in enacting the amendment to NSITF Act of 1993, which now covers such areas as unemployment benefits and social pension or assistance to the aged, children and other vulnerable groups.”

Abubakar also explained that the extended mandate of the NSITF as contained in the new amendment of NSITF Act, now waiting for President Jonathan’s assent, was aimed at extending social protection to more vulnerable groups in the country.

“The newly enacted amendment to the original NSITF Act of 1993 makes adequate provisions for non–contributory schemes like unemployment benefits, assistance to the aged, children and other vulnerable members of the society. Obviously, this new enactment, which is awaiting Mr. President’s assent, is aimed at focusing on these areas,” he said.

The NSITF boss who insisted that the future of social security in Nigeria is bright going by the cooperation of the organized private sector in the implementation of ECS, stressed that “it is gratifying to note that we have made appreciable progress in the buy-in secured from the organized private sector employers within the past two years of implementing the scheme. As at December 2014, a total of 23,482 employers have been registered from that sector. This translates to coverage of about 11 million employees in the private sector.”

According to him, efforts are ongoing to collaborate with the labour movement, social partners, employer bodies, and relevant NGOs for the scheme to get wider publicity and acceptance.

NSITF, NECA safe workplace intervention project

Continuing, Abubakar noted that on the platform of NSITF–NECA Safe Workplace Intervention Project, incentives were given to employers who complied with nationally drawn Occupational Safety and Health standards.

The incentives, he said included the award of ambulances and several infrastructural aids for the maintenance of safe working environment, saying this was assisting to achieve a vital aspect of the scheme— prevention of workplace accidents/diseases through improvement in quality of health and safety and provision of accident prevention infrastructure in contributing companies.

“Therefore, we embarked on aggressive public enlightenment programmes to raise the level of public dialogue and awareness about the ECS. Interactive sessions with stakeholders (NECA, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and other groups and associations) are on-going in the six geo-political zones of Nigeria. The fora have been expanded to include stakeholders from the states and local governments. Courtesy visits to win the support and buy-in of state governors have been undertaken to some governors, while visits to others are being scheduled. All of these activities are aimed at ensuring critical stakeholders are aware of their roles in the implementation journey,” Abubakar explained.

Olejeme, Esele speak on extended NSITF mandate

Esele

Speaking on the added mandate of the NSITF, board chairman, Mrs. Ngozi Olejeme said deliberate efforts are being made to highlight the goals of social security, saying, “in doing so, we note also that social security is not a social cost but an affordable investment in people and the state. Therefore, the goals of social security in any environment are to guarantee the following — eradication, reduction or prevention of poverty and vulnerability; improvement/standardization of quality of work and life; assurance of national social cohesion and peace; creating and diverting human, natural and economic resources towards nation-building and assurance of global or state security.”

Extension of mandate

According to her, the extension of mandate indicated the determination of President Goodluck Jonathan to drive enlarged social security that include the aged, children, unemployed youths and other vulnerable members in the society.

She said, “I am confident that Nigeria will not only achieve the aforementioned goals, but will surpass them when we aggregate the expected impact of the multi-pillar social protection programmes being offered to Nigerians through various schemes.

When full implementation of the new law by NSITF commences, the average Nigerian will be adequately catered for as a child, youth, middle-aged or aged as the law makes copious provisions for child benefits, unemployment benefits and old age benefits for the vulnerable.” On his part, immediate past President-General of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, Comrade Peter Esele, urged for the gathering of relevant statistics in order to ensure sustainable implementation of the enlarged mandate.