The Finance Ministry is considering a higher government contribution to the National Savings Fund (NSF) in order to increase retirees' income, says Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.
The finance minister said NSF members will also be encouraged to contribute more to the fund, as higher contributions from both the government and individuals would ensure members have enough income during retirement.
He said the ministry is finalising how much more the government should contribute to the fund. Once a decision has been reached, the ministry will make a proposal to the cabinet, said Mr Arkhom.
The amount should be high enough to encourage more people to save via the fund, he said.
The fund is for informal workers, such as freelancers, who are not members of a social welfare system or a provident fund. Participants must be at least 15 years old to join the fund, and can be members until age 60. Once they retire, members receive a pension of 3,000-7,000 baht per month, depending on their savings.
A ministry source who requested anonymity said the current pension income is deemed too low for people to live on in retirement. The ministry wants to increase the average pension to 15,000-20,000 baht per month. To achieve this goal, both the government and members will have to make higher contributions.
The government's current contribution to the fund varies depending on members' ages. For members aged between 15-30, the government contributes 50% of the member's contribution, but not more than 600 baht per year. For members aged 30 to 50, the government's contribution is 80% of the member's contribution, up to 960 baht per year. The government matches 100% of a member's contribution for ages 50 to 60, up to 1,200 baht per year.
Annual NSF contributions can be between 50 baht and 13,200 baht.
The fund has 2.38 million members, of whom 10.5% are in northern Thailand, 23.5% in the central region, 45% in the Northeast, 4.42% in western Thailand, 5.30% in the East and 11.3% in the South.
