The Retirement Benefits Authority (RBA) has announced plans to increase its asset growth to Ksh3.2 Trillion by the end of 2029.
According to the Authority, part of its five-year strategic plan will be achieved through increased collection from the Jua Kali sector and professionals who are not in formal employment beginning this July.
In the new push, the Authority is seeking to increase the assets by a 1.5 Trillion margin in the next five years, given that the current assets are valued at Ksh1.7 Trillion.
Speaking during the launch of the strategic plan in Nyeri, the Deputy Director of ICT, Peter Ngunyi stated that the Authority had approximately 3.2 million active members, a number they were pushing to raise.
“And the mass is in the informal sector, we are talking about people in the Jua Kali sector and professionals such as lawyers and doctors who are not in formal employment, and we are telling them to join an individual pension plan and save for retirement,” stated Ngunyi.
To implement the strategic plan, the government plans to partner with individual insurance companies that provide pension plans to reach Kenyans.
Additionally, Ngunyi noted that only 26 per cent of Kenya’s labour force was saving up pensions, with the figure comprising majorly those in formal employment.
“Most of the 26 per cent that is covered is from the formal sector. So, RBA is trying to partner with individual pension planners under the insurance sector so that we can venture where the mass is”, stated Ngunyi.
RBA, however, pointed out a trend in the country stating that only a segment of the population was saving for retirement.
This comes after the launch of a retirement benefits framework by the National Treasury, National Retirement Benefits Policy in March.
The framework is expected to boost Kenyans in accessing affordable housing and healthcare facilities after retirement.
According to the policy document creating the framework, the two services have proven difficult for retirees to access.
