Investments of funds are becoming a considerable resource for building viable and sustainable social protection systems. This can be drawn from the International Social Security Association’s (ISSA) technical seminar recently held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Over 300 registered participants and invited guests attended the ISSA Technical Seminar on Investing social security funds for viable and sustainable social protection systems in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire from 9 to 11 September 2024. The event focused on strengthening links between investing social security funds and the financing of social protection benefits and services, faced with limitations on traditional investment instruments, strict regulations on cross-border investments, and the need for developmental capital amidst increasing risks and volatility.
During the opening ceremony, Denis Charles Kouassi, Director General of the Ivoirian host organization, IPS National Social Insurance Fund, highlighted his institution’s success in extending coverage to the informal sector and financing social security benefits and services through investment returns. He emphasized that adequate investment returns are a new source of financing amidst the rising demand for benefits and services, contributing to the long-term sustainability of social security schemes.
The Minister of Employment and Social Protection, Adama Kamara, urged participants to incorporate the sustainability of social security systems into their investment strategies. He called on ISSA member organizations to seize investment opportunities that contribute to job creation and formalization to expand the contribution base, focus on long-term investments that are socio‑economically rewarding and beneficial to the national economy, and promote legislation for the financing of universal social protection.
As Vice President of the ISSA Technical Commission on Investment of Social Security Funds, Mohamed Fuaad Daboh, Director General of the National Social Security and Insurance Trust of Sierra Leone, reaffirmed that social security is a fundamental human right. ISSA Secretary General Marcelo Abi-Ramia Caetano stressed that the investment of funds has evolved into a core business activity in the administration of social security schemes.
Discussions during the technical seminar revolved around nine thematic clusters:
- Financial governance and investment mandates
- Social security studies and investment research
- Investment regulation, accounting and financial reporting
- Public infrastructure and socio-medical investments
- Investment in real estate, tourism and the hospitality industry
- Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
- Investments to build resilience to shocks and extreme events
- Dynamic investing and liquidity management
- Impact investing and the future of social security
The event falls under the 2023–2025 programme of activities of the ISSA Technical Commission on Investing Social Security Funds and ISSA’s focus on promoting resilient and sustainable social security organizations and systems.