December 7 disasters |20 December 2023
Mrs Abdul Majid flanked by Ms Suzette and Jeffrey Moses, chief pension administrator, during the press conference
Seychelles Pension Fund lends a hand
To help ease the financial pressures of employers who have been affected by the December 7 explosion, the Seychelles Pension Fund (SPF) has announced that it will allow for them to defer their contribution for a period of three months, from November 2023 until January 2024.
The deferred contribution is for employers only while employee contributions will remain applicable in view that they are deducted directly from the employees’ salaries.
SPF’s chief executive, Nisreen Abdul Majid, made this announcement yesterday during a press conference at the SPF office in Victoria.
Mrs Abdul Majid said these employers will have until April 21, 2024 to make contributions for these three months noting that they will not have to pay any applicable surcharges.
This will only be applicable for employers with businesses or operations in Cascade, Providence, Petit Paris and Brilliant areas.
According to Mrs Abdul Majid and the SPF database, there are 434 employers based in Providence and affected areas, with 45 at Cascade, Brilliant and Petit Paris. A total of 429 employers are up to date with their SPF contribution payments.
Employer contributions for November is due on December 21 and that of this month is due on January 21. So we are giving December to April, so it sums up to five months in general. We believe it will help employers with cash flow in their businesses thus employees will not lose their jobs, she added.
“We also want to inform all employers affected that we have space available at Dreamgate complex. If they are interested they can contact us and we can assist. The price is only R250 per square metre. SPF has already discussed this proposition of helping these businesses with the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry.”
She added that the SPF based at Providence was also affected but renovation is being done and it will be back. For now all transactions are being done at head office.
In regards to helping those affected by the disasters which have hit the northern part of Mahé as well, SPF’s head of enforcement and processing, Jane Suzette, said this initiative will not be applicable to them.
According to a press release from SPF, Section 18 of the Seychelles Pension Fund Act 2005 states that every employer is required to deduct from the Seychellois employee’s salary 5% as SPF contributions. The employer is also required to pay as employer contribution on behalf of the worker. The contribution payment is to be remitted to SPF not later than the 21st of the following month.
SPF has in the past been consistently sensitive to issues affecting one of its largest stakeholders; the business community. To recall that during the Covid-19 period, SPF reached out with a series of measures including deferment in contributions to reduce pressures from the pandemic.