Universal pension: Bangladesh govt okays draft act

As per the draft law, a person will have to provide a premium for at least 10 years to get pension from the age of 60 until his death.

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Photo: Collected

June 21, 2022

DHAKA – The cabinet yesterday gave the final approval to the draft of Universal Pension Management Act, 2022.

People aged between 18 and 50 can participate in this pension scheme. The expatriate Bangladeshis can also take part in it, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam told reporters at the Secretariat after a cabinet meeting.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina chaired the meeting virtually from her office.

He said the cabinet gave the nod to the draft law on condition that it be vetted by the Legislative Division. It will then be placed before parliament.

As per the draft law, a person will have to provide a premium for at least 10 years to get pension from the age of 60 until his death. The amount of premium will be determined by a rule under the proposed law, he added.

“If an elderly person dies before the age of 75, the nominee will get the pension for the remaining time. If anyone dies at 62, his or her nominee will get a pension for 13 years,” he said.

At any time, people could withdraw themselves from the scheme and they will get back their money, he said.

According to the proposed law, there will be a five-member national pension authority headed by a chairman and also a 15-member governing body with the finance minister at its helm, said the cabinet secretary.

The Finance Division has placed the draft of the Universal Pension Management Act, 2022, aiming to bring the growing elderly population under a sustainable social safety net so they can better cope with the fallout from unemployment, disease, old age complications, or penury amid the high life expectancy rate.

Also yesterday, the cabinet cleared a proposal for Bangladesh to sign and ratify Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled.

The cabinet cancelled its previous decision over the formation of the Sovereign Wealth Fund, which was taken in 2015.

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