Kathmandu, November 7

After a lengthy meeting with the government, bankers have agreed to join the social security scheme.

After meeting with Minister for Labour, Employment and Social Security Gokarna Bista today, a team of chief executive officers of various banks has consented to join the government’s flagship programme soon.

As per bankers who had participated in the meeting, they were convinced with the minister’s assurance that their genuine concerns will be addressed gradually.

Earlier, bankers had tabled a 12-point objection with the Social Security Fund (SSF), seeking their resolution before they joined the scheme.

“We have decided to join the scheme soon as Minister Bista has assured us that our concerns will be addressed,” one of the bankers informed seeking anonymity, adding that bankers still have some reservations but are acting on the minister’s promise to deal with their concerns gradually.

The government has extended the deadline for firms to register their details and that of their employees at the fund to November 29.

The government has said the deadline was extended considering the difficulty in convincing the private companies, especially banks and financial institutions and insurance companies to register at the government’s flagship social security scheme.

Earlier, bankers had demanded that the government include insurance policy for dependent family members of the banking staffers. Likewise, they had also demanded that mandatory registration of staffers at SSF be implemented only for those who had joined the institution after the fund was established.

The government’s flagship programme has only received lukewarm response from the private sector, following which the former is trying to aggressively promote the scheme.

As per government data, currently around 9,000 firms and 101,000 employees have been registered at the fund, while the deposit amount has reached Rs 90 million.