EPF urges housewives, informal workers to be members

KUALA LUMPUR: The Employees Provident Fund (EPF) is urging all housewives and their husbands, and those working in the informal sector to become members.

Chairman Tan Sri Samsudin Osman said 62 per cent of the 22 million working-age Malaysians are self-employed and not covered by any formal social protection.

“It is a sad fact that many Malaysians do not have enough savings for retirement. As a social protection agency, this is of great concern to us.

“Furthermore, recent statistics indicate more than 70 per cent of Malaysians do not have a rainy day fund for emergency expenses,” he said in his speech at the International Social Security Conference (ISSC) 2018: A Better Tomorrow yesterday.

Samsudin said the current economic climate indicated that people are facing steep increases in their daily cost of living and puts additional pressure on many, particularly those with low income.

“This directly affects their ability to save, let alone have an adequate income to last through their retirement years.

“We need to explore ways to respond effectively to ensure that the social protection ecosystem stays relevant and in line with the latest developments in the marketplace for the well-being (of the people),” he added.

Samsuddin said the low financial literacy rate at 36 per cent puts the country behind Singapore and Taiwan and led to poor spending decisions which resulted in high debts.