From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has said it would create new branches and service centres in 2024 to expand social services to the doorstep of all Nigerians in line with the social inclusion standards of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention 102.
Assuring Nigerian workers of better days, the Managing Director of the NSITF, Maureen Allagoa in a New Year message which was issued by the Spokesperson, Nwachukwu Godson, said the agency will consolidate its 2023 achievements while expanding the percentage of the population protected by social security scheme.
Allagoa explained, “we are expanding our operations into the informal sector and other unreached areas in dire need of our services so as to save more people from lacerating social conditions.
“We will create new branches to this end as well as build service delivery centers to be activated in select regions as pilot, in the first quarter of 2024. The focus is to reach Nigerians in the remote hinterland while reducing commuting distance for our staff members.”
She stated that with the delivery of social security benefits under different compensation packages to over 103,000 beneficiaries in the past years, the NSITF under her management had placed its duck in a row for the New Year.
According to her, “ we are poised to cover more areas of succor and reliefs to the victims of workplace accidents or their dependents in line with our mandate. But it is important to point out that this number, 103,000 beneficiaries, does not include 11 injured workers, whose conditions were so severe they couldn’t be treated in Nigeria and had to be flown abroad and over one hundred workers who had to be provided with artificial limbs.
“It does not also include the 670 dependent beneficiaries and 852 disability beneficiariescurrently on our monthly payroll, besides a number of deceased dependents under our care, pending the graduation of their last child from higher institution or attains 21 years of age.
“These are visible achievements which form the base of our plans for the New Year, of course, encouraged by the wider operation coverage as well as challenges occasioned by the directive of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, following FEC approval, that all the MDAs comply with the mandatory Employees’ Compensation contributions,” Allagoa enthused.