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National Insurance Fund in Critical Condition

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After the dust settled yesterday evening at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Sandiford Centre (LESC) Prime Minister Mia Mottley confirmed in flowery language what some in this medium and elsewhere have been alerting the public. The National Insurance Fund (NIF) on its current trajectory will be unable to honour its obligations to persons eligible for benefits from as early as 2034 – that is a short 12 years.

Briefing on the state of the NIS Fund (10 Aug 2022)

Was Prime Minister Mottley quoted in the press correctly that she was alerted to the danger faced by the NIS in June 2022 by actuary Derek Osborne? Surely the Prime Minister does not believe some of us are so gullible? That aside the blogmaster is pleased on the occasion of the availability of the 17th Actuarial Review of the National Insurance Fund, Unemployment Fund and Severance Fund as of December 31, 2020 it has finally been positioned on the front burner. 

17th-nis-acturarial-reviewDownload

A bone of contention has been the inability of the NIF to produced up to date financials. We learned yesterday during the press briefing at LESC the challenge is linked to reporting cash and accrual items and is being addressed by the NIS Board and Auditor General’s office. Again the promise of when current financials will be available is cloaked in non committal language. Although the NIS continues to struggle to produce current audited financials the prime minister’s message is correct, the structural problems afflicting the NIS looms large and must be the priority 1 concern.

The key takeaway from the briefing yesterday is that in a short 12 years the NIF will not be able to pay benefits to those eligible IF reform measures are not taken in the short term. With an ageing AND shrinking population there are limited corrective options available that will not be ‘painful’- add an underperforming economy to the mix and houston, we have a problem. 

Source: NIS

That it has taken so long to get to where we are today is bound up in politics but we are here now. Better late than never some say. Deputy chair of the NIS Board Rawdon Adams appears to have a grasp of the problem and seems earnest in his comments to move the matter along. We wish him and his Board of Directors well. The NIS is our rh life line.

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236 responses to “National Insurance Fund in Critical Condition”

  1. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    This World

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lA_mSmIgfM

  2. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    Down By The River Side

    Milton Henry

  3. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    Caterpillars are just the larval stage
    Butterflies

  4. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    when crooks turn on each other..

    the biggest beneficiaries of those massive thefts…now pretending it’s all on the TWO CORRUPT GOVERNMENTS…..and they know nothing…

    wannabes pretending to be millionaires and billionaires, but are nothing more than COMMON CLASS THIEVES….as birthed, and HAVE ALWAYS BEEN…

  5. Wily Coyote Avatar
    Wily Coyote

    Willy has looked over the report with his usual grain of salt attitude, the conclusions, even the worst scenarios are highly optimistic. Wily thinks the fund will be in trouble by 2028 and insolvent by 2030 unless the contributions and expenditures are significantly adjusted. Hard love is in store for present and future pensioners, unemployeed, severed etc. Just watch government come forward with some miraculous chest thumping sheme to save the day, yew we got this.

  6. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    Before we get into what race, ethnicity or geographical location they will come from , we ought to ask: where or how they will be accommodated.
    According to the Housing Minister , we are going to build about 10, 000 houses; according to Mr. Hoyos from the HOPE housing project, to build 1000 houses a year is a stretch. He also said , even if that is achieved the current back log will take four years and it will be growing during that time.
    So we don’t have enough houses at present but we are going to import 80, 000 people.
    We need to really come down from this pie in the sky nonsense and deal with the serious socio- economic challenges that are confronting the country.
    Peace

  7. David Avatar
    David

    The discussion about the need to increase the population is taking place against a background our death rate being higher than birth rate. Therefore with an ageing population that equates to increase drawdown on pension benefits, we have a problem as it relates to our negative birth rate and inadequate contributions to the fund to ensure it’s solvency. Instead of bringing emotional perspectives there is a need to be dispassionate. Are we there yet?

  8. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    Who will come to Barbados
    Young people may wish to start up
    Old people may wish to retire on the beach
    Business people may come to invest

  9. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    William……chickens are HOME and ROOSTING…

  10. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    The Gates of Hell – Roots Radics feat. Max Romeo

    The Gates of Dub – Lee “Scratch” Perry meets Roots Radics feat. Max Romeo

  11. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    Full Moon, Plant a Tree – Sly & Robbie feat. Lee “Scratch” Perry

  12. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    There is a live program in the diaspora outlining this and that……

  13. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ David
    The discussion about the need to increase the population is taking place against a background our death rate being higher than birth rate.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Like most other ‘discussions bout here’ this perceived issue is misguided and uninformed.

    Population science is a complex area of study, largely around the concept of dynamic equilibrium.
    Typically, the reason for decreasing trends in population is that the existing population is unsustainable on balance.

    When conditions are suitable, populations will either grow, stabilize or reduce, to maintain dynamic balance.

    Barbados has become a place over the past 20 years where all the indicators suggest that the population should RIGHTFULLY be reducing…
    – We have run out of resources such as productive land, water and crucially, common sense
    – Foreigners now own EVERY SHIITE in the place, and they are are TAXING our donkeys to death (debt) as a result.
    – Our damned children can only get work as laborers and security guards…or gang enforcers.

    This foolishness from the PM about artificially increasing population “in order to protect the NIS” is the height of IDIOCY
    Clearly from someone who obviously has no idea what the Hell she is talking about.

    The NIS was ill-conceived in the FIRST place …when politicians CHOSE to place themselves in charge of the fund, instead of finding INDEPENDENT PROFESSIONALS to manage the people’s assets.

    We ALL know that if we put our shiite politicians in charge of sewerage they will even F**** that up (fowl)
    – oh wait – WE DID THAT ALREADY TOO!!

    The SOLUTION to the population issue is to create a society that is CONDUCIVE to growth and stability – and this can ONLY be achieved through top class LEADERSHIP, VISION and WISDOM….. NONE of which we now possess.
    Our donkeys are grass…!!

  14. David Avatar
    David

    @Bush Tea

    How does your thesis link to reducing contributions to the NIS correlated with an ageing population? You know the blogmaster has a more pragmatic mindset.

  15. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    On another note David…

    Bushie is missing ac….
    Who the Hell does the bushman cuss and insult now…??!!

    There must be something that you know that Bushie missed, but if ac is banned, then the bushman is hard pressed to understand some other factors….
    …such as some UN-banned regulars.

  16. David Avatar
    David

    @Bush Tea

    Ac’s comments are being moderated. If she posts the blogmaster will release using best judgement. As you know this is done when some believe they can do as they like on the blog. Sometimes it is necessary to flex. You still have enuff don’t you?

  17. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    Bank on BOSS bonds – Duguid
    Barbadians have been chided for “not letting their money work for them”.
    It has come from Senior Minister with responsibility for Infrastructural Projects and Town Planning Matters, Dr William Duguid, who said the fact that Barbadians have over $3 billion sitting in commercial banks that offer little to no interest was proof of this.
    Speaking today in Parliament during debate on the Barbados Optional Savings Bond (Offer to Public) Bill, 2022, Dr Duguid urged those persons to take up Government’s bond offer, which he said had much more generous interest returns.
    Government’s BOSS Plus bonds, which will become available in September, offer an interest rate of 4.5 per cent and will mature in five years.
    nd the freak storm,” Dr Duguid said. (RB)

  18. David Avatar
    David

    @Hants

    Can you ask Duguid who were some of the Individuals who cash government bonds before maturity BEFORE news of the debt restructure was made public?

  19. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    David’s money cap is complaining and his funny boots are listening

    Gwan run up yuh mouth – Roots Radics feat. Pablo Moses

  20. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    How does your thesis link to reducing contributions to the NIS correlated with an ageing population
    ~~~~~~~~~~~
    Aging population Bushie’s burro!!

    The fall off in NIS contributions stem from the fact that ALL of the productive sector now belongs to damn FOREIGNERS.
    who the hell will pay the NIS contributions? the people in France/ Ireland/ Trinidad/ Canada/ Jamaica that now own SOL, Sagicor, BNB, BS&T, BL&P etc etc?
    How much damn NIS contributions can local clerks, ‘porters’ and ‘security guards’ pay?

    The shiite politicians get in Parliament and sell off all the country’s assets AND the children’s futures, and now complaining that they need to import more patsies to fleece..?

    Bushie is hard pressed to understand YOUR inability to see that the SIMPLE problem we face is the LACK OF VISION of the shiitehounds in Parliament.
    If YOU cannot see the jobby – and if YOU are trying to justify the idiotic assessment being made, then what hope is there for ORDINARY brass bowls?

    Ten years ago, we had NUMEROUS up and coming executives in many LOCAL businesses who paid MAXIMUM NIS contributions and who would probably NEVER draw a cent in pensions….
    The only ‘high level’ executives now are the skeleton staff who are ‘local messengers’ for the foreign owners – and the thousands of shiite ‘consultants’ being used by the politicians to reinforce their foolishness…. how much NIS do you think they pay…?

    Steupsss!!!

  21. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    @ David,

    I would like Duguid to tell us how much he has invested in these government bonds.

    He should set the example for his constituents and invest at least 75% of his cash.

  22. David Avatar
    David

    @Bush Tea

    Fair comment. Walter estimates about 85% of contributions are below the NIS cap.

  23. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    2 Hants
    Bank on BOSS bonds – Duguid
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Another boss idiot!!
    He was adamant about the $28 million spent on Chinese metal houses too… That turned out GREAT did it not!

    Steupsss…
    This is EXACTLY what the Moron from Moontown and Stinkliar used to say about the NIS funds, and it is now what the supreme leader and her cuntsultants are hinting about the savings of ordinary Bajans.

    Being a FOOL is one thing…. but it takes a REAL BRASS BOWL to be fooled over ..and over ..and over ..and over….

  24. Enuff Avatar
    Enuff

    Go buy some BOSS PLUS and keep quiet do. Brass bowl like you.🤣🤣

  25. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    ” Dr William Duguid, who said the fact that Barbadians have over $3 billion sitting in commercial banks that offer little to no interest was proof of this.”

    and that’s what itching their backsides, and got them can’t sleep at night…the people’s savings….to turn it all into J Series = JUNK..

    were i them, would be more concerned with the varying PRISON TERMS THEY ALL DESERVE….

  26. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ Hants
    I would like Duguid to tell us how much he has invested in these government bonds.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    What Duguid invest what!!??

    Probably more than 75% of his worth – but that is not likely to be much – given his propensity to keep hanging on to the political purse strings after REPEATED indications that he wanted to leave.
    Bushie would be surprised if he has $1000 in bonds.

    Lotta jokers – who cannot even run their own professional practices half decently, coming to offer ‘advice’ to citizens and to mess up the damn Treasury.

    Duguid could really keep his damn mouth closed until he can speak about the Chinese houses and the funny company involved.

  27. David Avatar
    David

    @enuff

    Hope the government you unswerving support is not mulling over a ‘bail in’ which NO has been hinting at for a while now?

  28. David Avatar
    David

    Duguid has sone well by investing in rental properties.

  29. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    Bushman…they believe everyone is like them….DEVOID OF COMMONSENSE and can’t see the TRAP they are trying to set……..their set-up skills are wanting after 4 generations….overused and massively ABUSED…

  30. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ Enuff
    You done KNOW that Bushie would NEVER buy a single BOSS bond – for the VERY SAME REASON that the bushman did not buy CLICO’ 8% policies….

    BEWARE – IDIOTS at the wheel……

  31. Enuff Avatar
    Enuff

    David
    Who else should I support, certainly not the BU egofowls?

  32. David Avatar
    David

    No all of them are enuff. In every segment of life all types will exist. BU is a reflection of wider society.

  33. Enuff Avatar
    Enuff

    Bushtea
    🤣🤣🤣 that’s your right.

  34. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    Duguid has done well by investing in rental properties.
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    A clear sign of genius….(not)
    Clearly not well Enuff to be able to follow up on giving up the political nipples… 🙂

    Re the ‘Bail in’….
    That is ALREADY a fait accompli …. just the implementation strategy now….
    But the brass bowls will DESERVE it….

    Have a look at what Straughn said in the House two weeks ago…

  35. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    the BU “egofowls” aren’t likely to go to PRISON FOR GRAND THEFT anytime soon….unless they start joining forces with the usual suspects to RIPP OFF the VAT, treasury and pension fund…

  36. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    People are free to channel ac

    A bird in the hand cannot fly like a bird in the tree, NIS funds have gone away
    Mia is a big bum, the rich get richer and the poor get shafted,,
    Ronnie Obama runs social media and is Christ in his Kingly character

  37. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    “BEWARE – IDIOTS at the wheel……”

    AND …THIEVES at the wheel….

    the people better WATCH their SAVINGS LIKE HAWKS…

    we have been smelling the STENCH OF DESPERATION for quite some time..

    …..they have run of distractions, sleight of hand moves and OUTRIGHT LIES…

    the banks are doing the most to frustrate people FOR THEIR OWN MONEY….that’s just the start…

  38. African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved Avatar
    African Online Publishing Copyright ⓒ 2022. All Rights Reserved

    *they have run OUT of….

    can’t believe they are advertising that SCAM…

  39. Donna Avatar
    Donna

    Same thing most of us were wondering. How are we to accommodate the 80,ooo people? Space wise, water wise and otherwise.

    Where are the jobs from whose proceeds the NIS contributions will be made? The only way the NIS contributions would be increased is if they created jobs.

    So….it is citizenship by investment?

  40. David Avatar
    David

    @Donna

    Government does not create jobs.

  41. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    People are obsessed about 80,000 which is the number stated as the population gap.
    People will come 1 by 1.., 2 by 2.., 3 by 3…, 4 by 4.., 5 by 5… so there is a long way to go for 80,000 suckers who cannot find better opportunities elsewhere like the Bajan diaspora abroad

    Which Numbers would you want to be in
    🇧🇧 Barbados 284,589 (2014)
    🇺🇸 United States 65,653 (2013)
    🇨🇦 Canada 37,780 (2016)
    🇬🇧 United Kingdom 18,762 (2011)
    🇧🇷 Brazil 5,000 (2016)

  42. Enuff Avatar
    Enuff

    Me with my pea brain always thought that lower birth rates was a standard feature for developing and developed countries, and immigration policy helped with workforce requirements and the 1.5 children. We can accommodate a larger population and it would provide vast opportunities.

  43. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ David
    Actually, one VERY SIMPLE answer to many of our problems would be to have general agreement that politicians will NO LONGER be required to talk UNLESS they actually have something specific to say.

    This situation where these losers HAVE TO SAY SOMETHING when ever invited out, and at EVERY cockfight, is a SERIOUS problem…
    It is hard Enuff for an intelligent person to put together a coherent speech when he/she has something USEFUL to say, so can you imagine the challenges for a piece ‘o idiot who HAVE TO SAY SOMETHING every time he turns up…?

    No wonder these people talk so much shiite…
    LOL
    ha ha ha

  44. Bush Tea Avatar
    Bush Tea

    @ Enuff
    Where will we accommodate them?
    Wha tare these ‘opportunities’ that currently elude our unemployed and under-employed young young people?

    Thanks..

  45. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    There are many (backward) Nationalists in the world but Immigrants add value and diversity to countries societies.
    There are no Barbadians. There are just International World Citizens.
    Africans from Africa could teach some Roots and Culture and nice up the dance.

    Good To Be There

    The DJ Rap

  46. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    This may be an overreach but can Barbados become a hub to world in a new dimension down the line in the faraway future or even in an alternative universe in a parallel world on the dark side of the moon where things are the same but different
    I’m trying to keep the music from dying

  47. NorthernObserver Avatar
    NorthernObserver

    @SS
    This issue of population is a red herring.
    Throughout the life of any such fund there will be periods where the contributors vs the beneficiaries are ‘not ideal’.
    The herring avoids having to deal with the fund acquiring PAPER in exchange for its CASH, and the management of it’s investment portfolio.
    It also avoids any discussion of other GoB ‘management strategies’ such as withholding deductions from public employees to fund central government. For this, the NIS got at least, $250M in Series J Bonds to add to it’s outstanding collection of GoB paper.
    This is the next scam waiting to happen, where certain issues of GoB paper is essentially worthless, but somebody acquires it at a huge discount, and then the GoB settles at a higher price, but less than face value, with the acquirer, who makes millions on the transaction.
    It will be explained to you, that by the ‘settlement’ of say $100M in Bonds for $75M, the GoB saved $25M. What they don’t tell you, is the NIS loss at selling the same Bonds for $10M. And somebody made $65M !!! While the NIS lost $90M.
    These politicians will explain the money was ‘only written off from an accounting perspective’, which means shit, this IS HOW money is written off. The question is, how the f++k was EVERY loan guaranteed defaulted on? That is the source of the write off.
    They will also tell you shiite about cash vs accrual accounting methods, while FAILING to tell you the missing Annual Reports have THREE components. One is financial, another is a report from the Board on the activities in the past year. Has the NIS ceased functioning, did they do nothing? Where is that report? Oh I forgot, until we have ALL three parts it cannot be released.
    Meanwhile they like to tell you they have “internal reports” and as such the Funds are functioning well, ‘we know’ what is happening, ‘we just can’t tell you’.
    The ‘breeding’ is happening TO the people, not between them.

  48. William Skinner Avatar
    William Skinner

    A few years ago, a number of Guyanese , more like 800 but certainly no where near 80, 000 were in Barbados.
    It was claimed that they were charging less for services such as plumbing, carpentry and masonry and this caused great irritation to Barbadian workers.
    They were also finding work in agriculture.
    Even a former prime minister said he had employed them.
    Now if a handful of Guyanese caused so much discomfort within our Labour force , can we imagine what several thousand from all over the word would do.
    Let’s paint a little scenario here:
    The economy picks up. The hotels are overflowing with guests. Barbadians are earning $400.00 per week. The importees with similar skills band up and work for $350 or less. How will Barbadians compete.
    Construction is booming and a similar scenario occurs. How will we handle such a development.
    This can be extended to university graduates, retail workers, etc.
    Who came up with the 80, 000 figure.? Perhaps it was calculated by some international agency that doesn’t have a clue about our economic culture outside of reports done by contracted professionals.
    What we need is a highly professional manpower department that can adequately identified what we have in the workforce and what we need.
    I don’t think that Bajan workers who have been holding strain for almost three years will take too kindly to a massive influx of foreign workers undermining the cost and value of their skills.
    I have chosen best case scenarios. Imagine if the economy is still in the doldrums. It will be a disaster. It will probably lead to disaffection or to be more blunt: violence.
    Peace.

  49. David Avatar
    David

    @Bush Tea and NO

    Your concerns register BUT the structural problem has to be solved in a short time frame?

  50. 555dubstreet Avatar
    555dubstreet

    Work your bum off and die while working to make others richer, it is the capitalist way.
    Africa is backwards or so they say.

    (there is no movement without rhythm)

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