(JUBA) – South Sudan’s National Social Insurance Fund (NSIF) has begun direct talks with the country’s main grouping of non governmental organisations, moving a step closer to bringing large sections of the formal workforce under a structured social insurance system.
The consultative meeting, held on Thursday at the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management in Juba, brought together the NSIF (National Social Insurance Fund) executive management and the Steering Committee of the South Sudan NGOs Forum. The Relief and Rehabilitation Commission Chairperson, Stephen Kueth, chaired the session.
NSIF Managing Director Reech Ring Bol presented a progress report on what the fund has achieved since its creation. He told the gathering that the Board of Trustees had formally adopted nine resolutions that set the operational foundation of the institution. These include the NSIF establishment roadmap, its organisational structure and a recruitment policy designed to staff the fund with qualified personnel.
Officials also walked the NGO representatives through the legal and policy frameworks that now govern the fund’s work under the NSIF Act of 2023. The documents cover employer and employee registration procedures, payroll processing rules, payment systems, bank account administration, auditing requirements and a formal process for handling grievances. For an economy where formal social protection has been largely absent, the adoption of these frameworks marks a significant administrative milestone.
The fund’s leadership said it intends to broaden public understanding of its mandate through workshops, conferences and radio programmes. In a country where radio remains the most effective way to reach working people across both urban and rural areas, the decision to use broadcast channels signals an effort to move beyond boardroom discussions and into public consciousness.
Members of the NGOs Forum Steering Committee welcomed the steps taken so far. They stressed the need for continued public engagement and made clear that protecting workers’ pension rights must remain at the centre of the fund’s mission. The NGO sector is one of South Sudan’s largest organised employers outside of government, meaning its cooperation is essential if the NSIF is to build a broad membership base.
Reech called on employees of both national and international organisations to visit the NSIF headquarters for information and consultations. He assured stakeholders that the fund would continue working closely with organisations to address concerns and build confidence in the system. Trust in public financial institutions remains low after years of economic instability, and the NSIF leadership appears aware that personal engagement with workers and employers is necessary to overcome this.
According to insurance experts, the meeting signals that the fund is moving from the design phase into practical implementation. With the legal instruments in place and board decisions taken, attention is now turning to registration of members, collection of contributions and the actual delivery of benefits. For South Sudanese workers, many of whom have spent their entire careers without any form of retirement savings protection, the arrival of a functioning social insurance mechanism could reshape expectations about formal employment.
The involvement of the NGOs Forum also carries practical weight. International and local NGOs employ thousands of South Sudanese staff, often on fixed term contracts that have historically fallen outside any social security net. Bringing these workers into the NSIF would expand the fund’s pool of contributors significantly and provide a test case for how the system handles non government employers.
No figures on projected membership numbers or contribution rates were released at the meeting. However, the fund’s management indicated that further technical discussions with employers would follow, covering the practical steps of payroll deductions, employer contributions and the transfer of funds to the NSIF’s accounts.
The progress on social insurance offers a narrative of institutional development at a time when other areas of public administration remain strained. The NSIF Act, passed in 2023, was one of the early legislative achievements aimed at formalising worker protections. Turning that legislation into a working fund with registered members and a disbursement capability is now the central task.