The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has launched a recruitment drive that targets to net over 2 million new members in the scheme.
The initiative which targets workers in the informal sector will run for the next 45 days.
Speaking during the event at NSSF headquarters yesterday, the pension fund’s chairman Gideon Ndambuki raised concerns that the country is experiencing low levels of uptake.
“It is alarming that out of 10 million workers in the country, only 10 percent save for their retirement using registered pension schemes,” he said in reference to data from the Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA).
He pointed out that Kenya has one of the highest levels of old age dependency in the world estimated at 56 per cent.
With the majority of Kenyans not saving for their sunset years, the country is facing a potential crisis in caring for its aged population, a move which piles pressure on the economy.
Ndambuki said that the campaign will also target employers in a bid aimed at encouraging them to recruit more of their workers in the scheme and remit the same to NSSF.
The NSSF chair further called on Kenyans to top up their contributions to enable the fund to have a stronger financial base. Currently, there are 2.3 million contributors to the national social scheme.
“We want to be in a situation where the government can be able to borrow from us to finance its mega projects instead of always seeking from foreign countries,” he said.
Despite having a large number of people in employment, he pointed out that Mombasa County has a number of people not registered in any in any scheme.