If tomorrow all Fiji National Provident Fund members decide to withdraw their funds, there is enough money to pay everybody and FNPF will still have $1.5 billion left.”
Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum stated this in Parliament while revealing the current position of FNPF after major reforms.
He says FNPF’s net profit increased to $538 million in 2018 attributed to better investment returns. Sayed-Khaiyum says the net profit is now doubled from $242 million in 2011 prior to the reforms.
When asked by SODELPA’s Mikaele Leawere whether there are any plans to review the pension rate as FNPF is now making a lot of profit, Sayed-Khaiyum says the members’ accounts are credited with interest.
Meanwhile, Sayed-Khaiyum says there were approximately 10,000 people on pension during the time of FNPF reforms in 2011.
He says all pensioners were given the option to either go along with the reforms or they could take out the lump sum.
Sayed-Khaiyum says out of the 10,000 pensioners, about 6,700 decided to stay on and 33 percent took out all their funds.
The Minister for Economy adds that there were approximately 1,405 pensioners who were receiving less than $100 per month prior to the reforms.
He says after the reforms, no pensioner gets less than $100 a month as previously there were pensioners who were getting as low as $7 a month and they were topped up to $100 per month after the reforms.
Sayed-Khaiyum also advised Parliament that there were 1,830 pensioners whose pensions got reduced as they were getting high amounts of pension on a monthly basis. He says there was one pensioner who was receiving $10,000 a month and getting a rate of return 25 percent before the reforms.
Sayed-Khaiyum says they opted to stay and as an example instead of getting $10,000 a month they are now getting $6,600 a month.
