Angola’s National Social Security Institute (INSS) has stepped up its mediation programme in Namibe province, seeking to raise enrolment in the country’s mandatory social protection system, with fishing and agriculture communities identified as the primary targets.
The initiative was announced on Tuesday in Moçâmedes by Francisco Mumba, the national coordinator of the INSS mediation expansion and management team, who underlined the central role mediators play in bridging the gap between the institute, contributing employers and insured workers.
According to Mumba, mediators are dedicated professionals whose core responsibilities are raising public awareness about the social protection system and actively recruiting new contributors to the mandatory social security framework.
The mediation programme was formally established in 2020 under Presidential Decree No. 301/20, which mandated the INSS to extend social security coverage — particularly in communities where the institute’s institutional presence remains limited.
‘Mediators go directly to communities and to other economically active segments of the population to convey knowledge about the rights and obligations associated with mandatory social protection,’ Mumba explained.
He added that, notwithstanding the outreach efforts already carried out by the INSS, enrolment in the social security system remains a persistent challenge, driven largely by low public awareness of the value of regular contributions.
Mumba acknowledged that some individuals continue to resist contributing to the social security system, operating on the assumption that they will not derive direct personal benefits from doing so.
To counter this perception, the INSS has been running awareness campaigns designed to clarify the full range of rights and entitlements that accrue to workers and employers who participate in the system.
Under the mandatory social protection coverage expansion project, eleven mediators have been trained and deployed initially to operate across Namibe province.
Mumba singled out the fishing and agricultural sectors as priority areas for the mediation drive, citing the province’s significant economic potential in both industries and the need to bring workers in those segments under the social security umbrella.
He said mediators will travel to communities and to institutions operating in the identified underserved sectors, where they will conduct awareness sessions and facilitate the registration of workers and employers in the system.
The initiative forms part of the INSS’s broader effort to widen mandatory social protection coverage and ensure that a greater share of citizens has access to clear and accurate information about their rights and obligations under Angola’s social security legislation.
Through the reinforcement of its mediation activity, the INSS aims to bring its services closer to communities across the province and foster higher levels of participation by both workers and employers in the mandatory social protection system.
Source: ANGOP / Original article: https://www.angop.ao/noticias/economia/inss-reforca-mediacao-para-ampliar-adesao-a-seguranca-social/
