Employee’s Trust Fund pays interest and dividends to private sector employees becoming the only social security programme operated in Sri Lanka which provides multiple benefits to its members, treasury sources revealed.
The employer makes a contribution of 3 percent from the gross earnings on behalf of the employee/member which is a non-contributory benefit to the member. In 2018, the number of members increased to 2.6 million from 2.5 million in 2017.
Similarly, the total contribution received from the employers with respect to their employees increased to Rs. 25.3 billion in 2018 in comparison to Rs. 22.8 billion in 2017.
There are 09 types of welfare benefit schemes available for ETF members including schemes providing assistance to the health care of members, housing requirements and financial assistance to the children of the members for education., Finance Ministry report disclosed.
Benefit claims amounted to 3,338 were processed during 2018 and Rs. 425 million was paid, while Rs. 144 million was paid for the children of members as a mean of assisting their higher education needs.
The objective of the Fund is to ensure that the members will have a non-contributory benefit to sustain them in their retirement life.
In addition, members are paid the balance available in the account along with dividends and interest upon termination/retirement. Accordingly, 186,206 refund claims were processed in 2018 and the total amount paid was Rs. 18.3 billion.
In 2018, the investment portfolio grew to Rs. 291 million, an increase of 11.1 percent over 2017. Over 75 percent of the ETF are placed in government Securities yielding a guaranteed return in the prevailing market conditions.
Correspondingly, in 2018, ETFB earned Rs. 28.3 billion Net Interest Income held while profit and dividends earned on shares account for Rs. 38 million.
In 2018, the Fund earned a Net Profit of Rs. 23.2 billion and has proposed to declare a total Dividend plus Interest rate of 9 percent to all members which accounted for Rs. 16.86 billion.
(LI)