Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Dr. Kwame Addo Kufuor, has been awarded the Outstanding Board Chairman of the Year 2019 award at the 10th Ghana Entrepreneur & Corporate Executive Awards 2020.
Dr. Addo Kufuor was found to have “demonstrated corporate leadership; sustained business performance, integrity, vision and business innovation in the National Pension Scheme in Ghana”.
In an interview with the media, Dr. Addo Kufuor dedicated his award to the Board of Trustees, Management and Staff of the Trust.
“I dedicate this award to the Board, Management and Staff of the Trust. This award is a testament to their hard work, team spirit and a willingness to change the narrative of the Trust. To stakeholders of the Scheme, especially pensioners, thank you. I believe that you are the reason the Trust exists, and your input over the years has contributed to sustenance of the Scheme,” he said.
He expressed gratitude to the organisers for recognising the work that the Board and Management have done at SSNIT.
“I congratulate the organisers of this event, the Entrepreneurs Foundation Ghana, for promoting entrepreneurial excellence and business development for the past 10 years in Ghana.
“I was on retirement from public service – only to be jolted out of retirement about three and a half years ago to come and serve my country again as Board Chair of SSNIT. I must say that I believe in serving my country, and any opportunity to do so is a privilege,” he said.
The Trust’s Board Chairman noted that over the past three and half years it has made several significant strides. He said that after his assumption of office, the Board and Management had to re-strategise and refocus the Trust’s business to position it as a credible, high-performing institution. He indicated that among notable achievements was the deletion of over 12,000 non-existent pensioners from the pension payroll, saving the Trust about GH¢106million.
He also mentioned that the Trust had saved millions of dollars as a result of the comprehensive value-for-money audit carried out on SSNIT investments to guide investment decisions by Management.
“I am particularly happy that pensioners are now paid within 16 days of submitting their pension application, compared to the several weeks it previously took to pay them.”
Dr. Addo Kufuor used the opportunity to encourage all workers, especially self-employed persons, to register and join the SSNIT Scheme. He urged the media to join in educating the working population about the importance of saving toward one’s pension.
“I’m also urging all media houses to partner SSNIT in educating the public, especially workers, to prioritise their retirement needs by contributing to the SSNIT Scheme now.”
Other award winners were Founder-SAS Finance Group, Togbe Afede XIV as Overall Best Entrepreneur of the Decade; and Executive Group Chairman of McDan Group, Dr. Daniel Mckorley, as Outstanding Entrepreneur/CEO of the Decade.
Profile
Dr. Kwame Addo Kufuor is Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), where he steers the Trust’s policy direction. He is a Medical Doctor, a former Member of Parliament and a former Minister of State.
Through his dedicated and inspirational leadership, the Trust has won several awards, including 2019 Company of the Year – Public Sector (Ghana Business Awards); 1st in the Public Sector Category for Customer Service in 2019; and Public Relations Organisation of the year (Public Sector) – 2018, among others.
