KAMPALA – In support of the Government’s interventions to combat the effect of COVID-19, the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has said it will allow Ugandan businesses facing economic distress to reschedule their NSSF contributions for the next three (3) months without accumulating penalty.
“With effect from today 31st March 2020, the Fund will allow Ugandan businesses facing economic distress to reschedule their NSSF contributions for the next three (3) months without accumulating penalty,” NSSF Managing Director Richard Byarugaba said.
“Affected businesses are advised to send an email to amnestyenssfug.org to work out the detailed modalities.
Kindly note that businesses that do not apply for this amnesty will be expected to continue honoring their statutory obligation to remit NSSF contributions by the 15th day of every month,” he added.
“The Fund appeals to its members and the general public to vigorously observe all the directives that have been issued to enable our country to overcome this challenge at the earliest.”
NSSF has been accused of not coming in to help it’s members in the face of coronavirus.
Opposition leader Dr Kizza Besigye last week said now is the time for the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) to support its subscribers in the face of coronavirus pandemic.
According to Dr Besigye, NSSF should roll out a programme to pay out a portion of members’ savings to afford them vital support thru the COVID-19 crisis. “It’s surprising that @nssfug hasn’t, as yet, rolled out a programme to pay out a portion of members’ savings to afford them vital support thru the #COVID19 crisis. Isn’t this what “Social Security”, a safety net, is about?,” he said on Tuesday, March 24, 2020.
But the NSSF Managing Director, Mr Richard Byarugaba, said the Fund is a social security scheme, created to provide a safety net for members in case of old age or permanent incapacitation and making any emergency payments would require amending the existing law.
“We empathise with Fund members in the face of the uncertainties resulting from the COVID- 19 pandemic. We understand tenements regarding need for partial Payments from the Fund. However, the Fund has no legal basis upon which to make ad hoc payments suggested,” Mr Byarugaba said in a statement on Tuesday, March 24, 2020.
“NSSF is a social security scheme, created to provide a safety net for members in case of old age, permanent incapacitation, or for dependents in the event of death of a member. The current pandemic does not meet any of the above criteria,” he added.
