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R450m outstanding benefit claims paid to ex-mineworkers

Southern Africa Trust executive director Bhekinkosi Moyo talks to Mining Weekly Online about the unpaid benefits of former mineworkers. Camerawork and editing: Darlene Creamer

7th April 2015

By: Megan van Wyngaardt

Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

  

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JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – In the past year, R450-million in claims have been paid to former Southern African miners to compensate them for unpaid pension, provident fund and service-award benefits.

Given that this made only a small dent in the estimated R6-billion that was owed by the Mineworkers Provident Fund (MPF), the Mines 1970s Fund, the Sentinel Mining Industry Retirement Fund and the Fidentia-linked Living Hands Umbrella Trust, besides others, there was still much left to be done.

From the MPF, which seems to have most of the unclaimed benefit – about R3-billion – 15% had been paid out.

Speaking to Mining Weekly Online, nonprofit facilitator Southern Africa Trust (SAT) executive director Bhekinkosi Moyo said this was a big success. “From zero disbursement [from the MPF], to almost R250-million; for us it is a lot.”

“We are happy to see that the funds are trying to disburse these claims as soon as possible. We are in agreement; in fact, we are talking about how we could help the funds fast-track this. If there is an issue of capacity, we could also begin to think of innovative ways through which we can work together to fast-track that,” he said.

He added that there were almost 300 000 miners that still needed to claim for unpaid benefits, while many former miners had been traced during the past year. “In South Africa, the Southern African Mineworkers Association (Sama) traced 9 000 workers and, of those, about 3 000 have been reimbursed.

“In Lesotho, almost 12 000 mineworkers were traced, in Swaziland, 1 200 were traced and, in Mozambique, about 5 000 were traced. The figures of how many have been reimbursed still need to be finalised.”

Moyo highlighted that the Sentinel Retirement Fund had about R220-million in unclaimed benefits.

“As of last year, by October, they were able to correct the data of about 5 092 claimants. So, now they are putting in place some modalities and, if implemented, it would take a huge chunk, because their database is about 8 000 and, if 5 000 are paid, it would almost clear that R220-million,” Moyo highlighted.

Also speaking to Mining Weekly Online, SAT programme manager: social capital Christabel Phiri said these funds were facing a number of issues, including a lack of detailed information.

Besides the issues around information dissemination, there were also issues around legislation, which was a barrier that affected the social security funds in terms of tracing beneficiaries.

“The funds are only allowed to publish a certain amount of information in terms of the possible beneficiaries on their database and this has been a challenge.

“One of the issues that we have been trying to address, through a regional dialogue held in March, has been trying to get stakeholders, such as the Financial Services Board (FSB), to look into that and to try and find an exemption for the funds from the Personal Information Bill and Act, allowing the funds to spread the information and trace the beneficiaries better,” she noted.

In terms of the legislation challenges, Moyo argued that the time it took for a claimed benefit to lapse, about 24 months, needed to change.

“If you don't claim within the first 24 months, the benefit lapses. So again, we are looking at possibilities from the trust and from other partners, including the FSB to see if there are exemptions that can be implemented.

“If we don't address this, it means that [nearly none] of the claims [can] be paid out. This is going to be a legal struggle, as we need to appeal the system and laws and have Parliament take some action,” he averred.

Phiri added that independent tracing agents also posed a challenge, as many of them would charge a substantial amount of money for claiming these monies on the beneficiaries’ behalf. “We are trying to regulate this and get supervisors for these tracing agents,” she noted.

“The issue here is the poverty levels that the ex-miners and their beneficiaries are facing on a day-to-day basis, so one day for us as an activist organisation is one day too long. But we also recognise some of the processes that need to be undertaken and the leadership that needs to come from key institutions such as government. Our role is to mobilise advocacy functions for that,” Moyo added.

THE SOLUTION
Moyo outlined that the establishment of a centralised database would go a long way in helping to overcome many of the challenges faced. “Rather than having databases all over, with four or five funds carrying different databases for the same person, because the information is not shared, we want to have all information in the same place.”

Such a database would ideally be managed by the FSB and the Regulatory Services Board, with oversight by government.

“Another potential solution proposed at the March meeting was to, in many ways, hype up the communication channels, making use of various media platforms, including radio and social media, but also to dig deeper to some of the unsung victims, which are your widows and the children, who are bearing the brunt of all of this.

“But mostly, we need to harmonise a lot of initiatives that are happening,” stated Moyo.

He noted that a task force had been established in 2014 to achieve this.

“The next step is to see if the Southern African Development Community (SADC) secretariat can coordinate all the regional initiatives - so you have your International Organisation of Migration (IOM), you have your World Bank, the Trust, Sama and many others who are doing different things, but all geared towards the unclaimed benefit and social protection.

“So we have asked the SADC secretariat, through a committee on labour migration, to begin looking at how all these initiatives can be harmonised,” he added.

Further, he said the trust had commissioned a study to develop a model that could be used to create a regional portability mechanism.

“We will continue playing a mobilisation role, we will continue playing the convening role in the task force, so that we continue to keep track,” he said.

SMART WITH MONEY
When asked whether the former miners received guidance on how their money should be used to their benefit, Moyo noted that some of the partners in the task force were carrying out a programme to assist with this.

“The IOM, for example, [is] working with the associations and the ex-miners to help them to plough the money into livelihood projects,” he said.

These included the rearing of livestock, investing in agriculture and investing the money for greater returns.

Edited by Chanel de Bruyn
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online

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