The National Committee on Social Protection held its eighth meeting in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday.
SOCIAL protection measures are compulsory for a government to serve the people, said Chairman of the National Committee on Social Protection State Administration Council Vice-Chairman Deputy Prime Minister Vice-Senior General Soe Win at the eighth meeting of the national committee at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday afternoon.
In his speech, the Vice-Senior General said that the “National Social Protection Strategic Plan (2014)” was drafted to carry out social protection measures ten years ago, and so the committee members and departments should record the advantages and disadvantages of the implementations within these 10 years. If so, the governments can widely perform social protection activities more effectively. There are two sections in social protection, the first one is the Social Insurance System in which both the employers and employees contribute proportionally, while the government also makes proper contributions. That system is being adopted by the Social Security Board under the Ministry of Labour. The second one is the Social Assistance Scheme which is implemented with contributions by the government and donations from private philanthropists. That system is being conducted by the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement.
He continued that the country has engaged with the International Social Security Association (ISSA) working with 338 organizations from 163 countries starting from 4 October 1927 to communicate with international countries for social protection measures and exchange the fine practices with member countries. Moreover, the country inked a Memorandum of Agreement with the ASEAN Social Security Association (ASSA) on 10 September 2015 to exchange experiences and practices for social protection as a member and is working with 20 social security organizations from 10 ASEAN countries.
He then mentioned nine benefits for social protection – healthcare services, health benefits, unemployment benefits, superannuation benefits, occupational permanent disability benefits, family assistance benefits, childbirth benefits, survivors’ benefits, and benefits for seriously injured persons. He added that the contributions are provided depending on the budget status and the government also cooperates with international countries.
The Social Welfare Department manages to launch the Social Pension and Maternal and Child Cash Transfer Programme (MCCT) in the 2024- 2025 financial year via all Myanma Economic Bank branches. Moreover, plans are underway to provide children under 2.
The financial assistance programmes will be implemented using the Public Feedback Programme (PFP) being conducted by the Anti-Corruption Commission despite the challenges in carrying out the social protection activities.
He also instructed officials to make preparations now to provide more assistance in the future while the assistance is being made using the funds of the government. He then urged employers to consider proper ways to provide for their employees in various forms, especially, to discuss future assistance programmes depending on the financial status of the government in addition to their currently running businesses.
He continued that every country has its own social protection schemes, and the global scale shows that 12.9 per cent of GDP is allocated to social protection expenditure, and it is 1.1 per cent in most low-income countries. The percentage of assistance can be seen depending on the country’s GDP.
He then added that, according to the Elderly People Law enacted in 2016, arrangements are being made to issue senior citizen identification cards to facilitate access to exemptions for the elderly. As the first stage, discussions are being made with relevant ministries to determine the exemptions or reductions to provide within their respective services, as outlined in the related regulations. For the second stage, the committee issues notifications regarding the exemptions and reliefs in different services, and in the third stage, the data collection of the elderly, review, and issuance processes will be conducted for certificates. Moreover, it needs to be updated with social management information.
He also called for proper suggestions as the social protection measures are compulsory for a government to serve the people, and are investments that directly benefit the public.
Then, Committee Vice-Chairpersons Union Ministers Dr Soe Win, U Chit Swe, and Dr Thet Khaing Win reported on the current undertaking of social protection work plans, full benefits for employees, and healthcare services.
Afterwards, the attendees coordinated the discussions and the Vice-Senior General concluded the meeting. — MNA/ KTZH
