RIVAL PENSION SAVINGS SCHEMES FOR THE POOR

       Two new national pension schemes aimed mostly at the poor are being discussed. But the Office of the Social Security Fund says the government has not paid its contribution of about Bt21 billion to that fund.
       Somchai Sujjapongse, director general of the Fiscal Policy Office, said yesterday the Finance Ministry planned to submit a national pension bill to the Cabinet for approval after the ministry completes public hearings, which should happen by the end of this month.
       The new fund would be designed to provide financial support for people excluded from the existing government pension system. Most are poor and farmers, estimated to be about 24 to 25 million in number, Somchai said at the first public hearing on the issue yesterday. The government plans to establish the fund next year and expects to welcome members on a voluntary basis by the middle of next year, Somchai said.
       Eligible members would be those working in the informal sector and aged between 20 to 60 years. The minimum contribution to the fund would be Bt100 per month and the maximum Bt1,000. The government would contribute Bt50 for people from 20 to 29 years old, Bt80 for those 30 to 49 years old and Bt100 for those 50 years and up. After a member turned 60 years, he or she saving Bt100 monthly would receive a pension worth about Bt2,000 per month.
       In response to a ministry survey, most people said they could contribute up to Bt800 a month to the fund. Somchai estimates that the government may need to pay Bt25 billion in the first year and the fund size may be Bt50 billion.
       The National Economic and Social Advisory Council (NESAC) is proposing a different version of the same idea, called the "National Savings Fund for Population Ages", which would require the government to contribute only 10 per cent of each member's account.
       Manochai Sudjit, a member of the research team that conducted the study for NESAC, said the government might face budget constraints if it chose the Finance Ministry's proposal.
       A high contribution from the government might also encourage people to abandon their community savings scheme to join the national pension fund. The community savings scheme should be preserved, Manochai said at separate seminar hosted by the NESAC. He also said that the ages of eligible member should be lowered to 16 years old.