The GLC will also continue to target the informal and self-employed sectors to ensure all Malaysians will benefit from retirement savings

by S BIRRUNTHA / TMRpic

THE registration of new members for the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) increased by 57% to 146,000 people in the first quarter of 2022 (1Q22), according to Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz.

He said in an effort to strengthen the government-linked companies’ (GLCs) support ecosystem, EPF has embarked on a long-term strategy to expand the coverage of social protection of Malaysians.

“This is in line with the retirement fund’s efforts to embark on a long-term strategy to expand the social protection coverage of Malaysians to strengthen the support ecosystem of GLCs and government-linked investment companies.

“Currently, although various social protection initiatives have been introduced and some have received government funding, the average awareness of the importance of social protection and preparation for old age is still too low among a large number of Malaysians,” he said during the launch of EPF i-Lindung insurance and takaful facility in Kuala Lumpur today.

Speaking further, Tengku Zafrul cited the data of the International Labour Organisation, where only 47% of the world’s population has at least one type of social protection, and only 35% of the working population is protected in the event of an accident accidents at work, while 2.1 billion of the world’s population still not protected.

The minister added that a study by the National Health and Morbidity Survey revealed that almost half of the total Malaysian population have no additional savings to pay for medical costs.

“This is a challenge that will be faced by Malaysians as we get closer to achieving the status of ageing nation as early as 2030.

“If the elderly is unable to meet their basic needs, the financial burden will be borne not only by the government, but also, future taxpayers. It will also lead to higher medical costs for Malaysians in the future,” he said.

As such, Tengku Zafrul said the government is actively studying policies that can accelerate the process of increasing social protection coverage, which will be announced later.

He added that EPF will also continue to target the informal and self-employed sectors to ensure all Malaysians will benefit from retirement savings.

Apart from that, the minister also noted that the government has already announced the minimum wage of RM1,500 on May 1, 2022, which will also contribute to improving the quality of life of the people.

He said, to coordinate social protection programmes in a holistic and integrated manner, the country has also reactivated the Malaysian Social Protection Council in 2020, of which EPF is a part.