Zamara enters micro-pension deal with firm

Mr Sundeep Raichura, the Zamara CEO. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Pension fund administrator Zamara Group and Singapore-based tech firm pinBox Solutions have inked a deal to widen micro-pension coverage in Kenya.

The firms said the “ready-to-deploy model and a pensionTech platform” will enable Zamara establish an inclusive, digital micro-pension marketplace. Micro-pension arrangements are meant to insulate low-income earners against old-age poverty.

The pinBox model was first adopted by Rwanda for launching of its national-level government-sponsored EjoHeza micro-pension scheme in December last year.

“pinBox is now working with an institutional consortium led by Kenya’s leading pension administrator, and including some of Kenya’s largest insurers, retail commercial banks and cooperatives to launch Africa’s first, national-ID linked, and private sector driven national micro-pension scheme targeting Kenya’s 15 million informal sector workers,” said PinBox.

The target population includes domestic help, youth, self-employed women and other non-salaried individuals.

This digital micro-pension programme was launched at the Afro-Asia FinTech Festival in Nairobi.

“The solution will provide a secure and affordable mechanism which any Kenyan citizen will be able to conveniently access simple and regulated pension and insurance solutions,” said Zamara Group chief executive Sundeep Raichura.

Parul Seth Khanna, the director and co-founder of pinBox, said the micro-pension scheme will tap the country’s 17 million informal sector workers.

“This is a very important first step for us as we march ahead in collaboration with governments, regulators and pension and financial inclusion stakeholders across Africa to help deliver secure and affordable retirement solutions to 500 million excluded non-salaried workers,” Mr Khanna said.

More than 9.2 million people are expected to be above the age of 60 years and nearly 85 percent of them will not get a pension, according to Zamara.