Employees of Việt Nam Social Security, HCM City, educate the public about voluntary social insurance. — VNA/VNS Photo Anh Tuấn

HCM CITY — Việt Nam Social Security has strengthened dissemination of information about the benefits of voluntary social insurance to attract more people to join.

In May it tied up with Vietnam Post for a month-long campaign for this purpose, and within a day 24,704 people signed up.  

The southern province of Đồng Nai is one of the localities where more and more people working in the informal sector have voluntarily signed up thanks to Việt Nam Social Security (VSS)’s strengthened communication.  

Its officials have joined hands with local officials to meet informal workers and others in rural areas to explain to and encourage them to buy social insurance.

After understanding the benefits, nearly 8,500 people have bought it.

Trần Kim Phụng, 37, of Trảng Bom town is a tailor working out of her house while her husband is a motorbike driver.

They did not have social insurance, but  recently heard about the benefits of social insurance and have joined and now pay more than VNĐ600,000 (US$25.8) each a month.

They have also encouraged their relatives and friends to sign up.  

“Voluntary social insurance is a good policy, helping workers in the informal sector like me to get a pension when I become old,” Phụng said.

“The pension will be useful for me to not depend on my children and not be worried about money when I am old.”

Lê Sĩ Ba, 32, of Tân Phong Ward in the province’s Biên Hòa city, runs a small business. In May he bought social insurance and pays a monthly premium of paying VNĐ700,000 ($30).

There are various levels of monthly premiums, giving low-income people like him several options to choose from.

“I … will get a pension and health insurance when I become old. The monthly pension is a long-term and firm foundation.”

Phạm Minh Thành, Đồng Nai Province director of VSS, said the Government subsidises the monthly premium by 30 per cent for poor people buying social insurance, 20 per cent for people nearly the poverty line and 10 per cent for others.

It could be bought for just VNĐ150,000 a month, he said.

Đồng Nai has one million people who do not have social insurance yet, he said.

VSS staff visit each household to encourage people to join.  

In HCM City, 17,607 people joined in the first four months of this year.

Speaking at a meeting between the HCM City unit of VSS and the People’s Council’s Board for Cultural and Social Affairs, Phan Văn Mến, director of the former, said the Government should increase the rate of subsidy and also the benefits from social security.

The minimum period after signing up for getting a pension should be reduced since 20 years is too long, he said.

VSS aims to get at least 300,000 more people around the country signing up this year, increasing the total number of voluntary insurance buyers to more than 800,000.

As of April 30 there were 557,000 members, 16,000 down from 2019.

Trần Hải Nam, deputy head of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids, and Social Affairs’ social insurance department, said more than 70 per cent of the public does not even know about voluntary social insurance.

This is a hurdle to increasing the number, he added. — VNS