The Chief Executive Officer of the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) Hayford Atta Krufi has called for full financial independence for the authority to help it perform its supervisory role adequately.
The role of the authority has been recently questioned after the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) commenced investigations into the purchase of a 72 million dollars IT software by the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
Some financial observers blamed the regulator(NPRA) for not properly monitoring the activities of stakeholders leading to the mismanagement of pension funds.
But speaking to Citi Business News at the sidelines of the Graphic Business Breakfast meeting, Mr. Krufi stated that financial independence of the NPRA is necessary for the authority to efficiently undertake its monitoring role.
“It is important for the regulator to be financially independent; thankfully the government has now given NPRA financial autonomy, so to a large extent our operations are not subject to any government control. We have talked about boards, we have talked about appointment of CEO, all those things are still not full independent. One major constraint is resources”.
Mr. Krufi stated that the authority has not yet been admitted in the International Organization of Pensions due to its weak financial stands which makes the authority rely heavily on funds from government even though it was recently granted some financial autonomy.
“For the International Organization of Pension Regulators to fully recognize us, there should be lack of control from government. The government really does not interfere with our day to day operations at all, Act 766 is our guiding principle, and whatever the 766 gives us to do, that is what we do. There hasn’t been any government interference. The only thing that constraints us is resources,” he stressed.
EOCO investigations into SSNIT
On EOCO’s investigations into SSNIT, Mr. Krufi stated that NPRA has requested for the details of the IT software acquired by the SSNIT at a cost of 72 million dollars.
Mr. Krufi stated the regulator will act on the investigations of the EOCO when completed.
Citifmonline