$1b pension scheme for dirt poor

Finance and the Public Service Minister Dr Nigel Clarke has announced a $1-billion social pension programme for the poor and vulnerable of the elderly population who are not receiving money from the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education and other pension schemes.

It is estimated that there are 30,000 elderly persons in Jamaica who are in that cohort and not in receipt of National Insurance Scheme (NIS) payouts, pensions, or poor relief.

“We recognise that this amount is not nearly sufficient to address the needs of the elderly. But this is a start, and we must start somewhere,” he told his parliamentary colleagues as he opened the Budget Debate on Tuesday.

Clarke said that the Government would be careful to ensure that the social pension programme was not a disincentive to enrol in the NIS. As such, the benefit level and the age at which a person can qualify for this pension will differ from the NIS.

“The social pension is intended to correct historical structural inequity which makes it difficult for informally employed persons to contribute to the NIS,” Clarke said.