Insurance schemes for workers on cards

REPUBLICA
KATHMANDU, March 26: The government is launching nine insurance schemes, targeting public and private sector employees, who have been contributing one percent of their salary to social security fund.

The government had announced the social security scheme with mandatory contribution by employees and workers through the budget for 2009/10.


The government put seal on Social Security Fund (Management and Operation) Regulations 2011 on Monday, paving the way for the operation of fund that aims to provide social security to its contributors.

"The fund targets to launch different insurance schemes to ensure social security for employees and encourage them for better productivity in the workplace. The scheme is expected to automatically bring down the incidents of labor unrests in the coming days as it has attempted to fulfill workers´ major demand (social security),” said Purna Chandra Bhattarai, joint secretary at the Ministry of Labor and Transport Management (MoLTM), which formulated the regulations.

The scheme incorporates nine insurance programs such as unemployment insurance, accident insurance and sick insurance, maternity insurance and dependent insurance. Similarly disability insurance, old age insurance, medical insurance and family insurance are also included under the scheme. The schemes will be implemented in a phase-wise manner.

"Of the nine schemes, we have targeted to execute four schemes in three years and all schemes within six years," said Bhattarai.

All salary and wage earners have been contributing 1 percent of their remuneration to the fund. However, modality of contribution from the state to the fund is still to be determined.

The employees working in different government agencies, board, committee, centers, public enterprises and private enterprises can participate in the scheme by contributing the required amount to the fund that will be operated as a revolving fund.

The fund can conduct insurance or reinsurance of any liability of the social security programs to minimize the risk of heavy financial liability. The schemes will come into implementation once the fund, which will be handled by a nine-member committee led by the secretary at the MoLTM, becomes operational.

Other members of the committee include representatives from the Ministry of Finance, MoLTM, Ministry of Law and Justice, Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Confederation of Nepalese Industries (CNI), Nepal Chamber of Commerce, three representatives of trade unions designated by the government and one executive director.

The fund will be contributed by salary and wage earners, government grant, assistance from donor countries, international institutions and individuals as well as domestic institutions and individuals.

The committee will give policy level suggestions to the government on social security scheme, formulate and implement the scheme and invest the fund in secure sector, among others.

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