232news
By Marilyn King
The National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT) has held an informal sector stakeholders engagement at the Freetown International Conference Center, Bintumani in Freetown on Thursday 23rd February 2023.
The informal sector comprises fishermen, hair dressers, petty traders and drivers among others. The Social Protection Officer of International Labour Organization (ILO) from Nigeria, Segun Tekun, described the work the informal sector are doing as great because they are contributing to the growth of that country’s economy.
He furthered that through the work that the Informal Sector are doing, the government wanted to prioritize the Informal Sector so that when they get old, they would be having monies at their old age. He thanked the Informal Sector for acknowledging the invite from NASSIT and pledged his organization’s determination to see that the entire process yields the desired dividends.
The National Project Officer of the Informal Sector, of UNDP, Phebean Jaia, said they has a commitment to support anything that deals with transforming the economy, by supporting the Informal Sector. She stated that over the years, UNDP has been working with the government and other development partners, to support the Informal Sector. She noted that UNDP has always gave their support to NASSIT. She said UNDP is ready to give their support to NASSIT, to make sure the Informational Scheme come into cohesion. She thanked NASSIT for their initiative and ready to join with other Institutions.
The Informal Sector Coordinator, of Sierra Leone Labour Congress, Vandi Lansana, thanked the government for their effort in the Informal Sector. He said the NASSIT Scheme is very important because of their old age. He maintained that they have been started working with NASSIT, and they will continue to work with NASSIT. He maintained that they were committed to NASSITand had been paying their NASSIT Contributions, support the process, and were ready to work with NASSIT as always.
The Chairman of Informal Sector Committee of NASSIT, Edwin Kamara, said when the Director General of NASSIT, took the leadership of NASSIT, he told them that he will turn his attention to the core business of NASSIT. He said the core business of NASSIT is to provide the social protection for all workers and also those who are at the Informal Sector are also workers. He noted that the DG called his management team to form a small committee that will look at the Informal Sector. He said they put papers together and looked at all what has been happening in the past years in the Informal Sector. He said the DG advised that they should hold a bigger engagement with the Informal Sector.
The Director General (DG) of NASSIT, Mohamed Fuaad Daboh, said under his leadership that was the first public meeting with the Informal Sector. He noted that 20 years down the line NASSIT has become a household name in Sierra Leone. He furthered that every end of the months they always pay pension in Sierra Leone, which is their primary responsibility as a scheme. He maintained that they had discussions with the International Labour Organization (ILO) that they are responsible for business workers in the Informal Sector for their NASSIT Scheme. He expressed gratitude to the ILO for their support to the process. He thanked the Technical committee for their effort. He also thanked the two consultants on the Informal Sector from Costa Rica, South America, Luis Bernardo Saenz and Jose Pacheco, for their effort towards the great Work in the Informal Sector.
