As a public policy advocate committed to policy integrity and the protection of the rights and financial future of Ghanaian workers, I wish to bring to the attention of the president, all his appointees, and fellow Ghanaians the growing phenomenon of dangerous political interference in the administration of privately managed pension funds.
Some political appointees at State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) are taking unilateral decisions to cancel existing pension fund contracts and reassign them to politically favoured firms. These acts, executed without consultation with workers are not only unlawful but set a dangerous precedent for the integrity and sustainability of Ghana’s pensions industry.
We must remind the public and those in authority that:
Pension funds under Ghana’s Three-Tier Pensions System — particularly under the Tier-2 Defined Contribution scheme — are not the property of employers or government. They are individual investment accounts held in trust for workers by Trustees, and once contributions are made, legal ownership vests in the worker. Neither the government nor employers guarantee retirement benefits under the second and third tiers. Members therefore bear investment risk and carry the risk of pension scheme failure.
Pension Funds Are Not Political Spoils
This new wave of politically motivated contract terminations seeks to reward politically connected pension firms with control over billions of cedis in worker savings, regardless of performance, cost, or capacity. We saw this situation under the NPP government and we at IMANI wrote extensively to condemn it. These actions echo the mismanagement and politicization that plagued the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) in the past, where political interference led to high-profile investment failures and massive losses.
If we allow this patronage culture to infect the Tiers 2/3 pension space, we risk triggering a systemic crisis in the pensions sector that would undermine confidence, endanger worker retirement security, and deter responsible local and international investment in Ghana’s financial sector. The country has still not recovered from massive business failures in the banking and asset management industries where politically aligned firms grossly misused depositors’ funds without any legal consequences. Last week, we are told that the Attorney General is discontinuing prosecution in one of the cases involving a high-profile political figure. A strong pensions system run by capable firms, devoid of political conflict, is what we seek in our quest to build a sustainable retirement system in Ghana.
Call to Action: Workers and Unions Must Resist
We call on:
- All labour unions, particularly in the SOE sector, to stand firm against any attempt by political appointees and their political masters, to interfere with pension service provider selection;
- Workers to demand transparency and consultation before any changes are made to the management of their retirement savings;
- Regulators such as the National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) to act swiftly and uphold their mandate of protecting pension fund beneficiaries not political interests, as the current NPRA CEO is believed to be portraying. A regulator is not vested with the power of appointment of service providers of pension schemes for the NPRA CEO to write letters to terminate contracts of some service providers.
Under the National Pensions Act, 2008 (Act 766), employers and, by extension, their political appointees, have no legal authority to tamper with or redirect pension funds once they are remitted. Pension fund assets do not sit on the employer’s balance sheet, and attempts to use them as political rewards or leverage represent a clear conflict of interest that could spiral into large-scale abuse and mismanagement. Let’s keep politicians very far from our pension funds.
A Moment of Truth for Ghana’s Financial Future
The pensions industry has grown steadily over the past 15 years, now managing over GHS80 billion in assets. This growth must not be reversed by short-term political gains or misguided control. We cannot afford to repeat the SSNIT-era mistakes with the Tier-2 system. Remember, the scars of Akufo-Addo’s haircuts on pension assets and pensioner savings still remain with us. I feel personally motivated to take up this fight, in the interest of Ghanaian workers for the simple reason that, Tier 2, is the only financial fall back most Ghanaians can retire to, considering the dark clouds hanging over SSNIT today.
President John Dramani Mahama has spoken boldly about resetting Ghana’s governance and restoring accountability. We urge His Excellency and all stakeholders in his administration to act decisively and preserve the independence of Ghana’s pension system. This is not just about contracts. It’s about the dignity of the Ghanaian worker, protection of Ghanaian enterprises, and the future of retirement income security in our nation.
This piece seeks to inform the general public and contributors to the pensions system to be on guard. The next piece would name and shame firms and persons behind attempts to appropriate pension funds as political spoils.
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