South Sudan Social Insurance & Retirement Pilot – Education Sector

Background:

South Sudan currently lacks a comprehensive and functional social insurance system to provide pensions and retirement benefits for workers across sectors. This gap leaves many elderly citizens—especially teachers—without income security in their later years, forcing them to work beyond retirement age or depend on family support.

Teachers, who dedicate decades to building the nation’s human capital, often retire without access to reliable pensions or healthcare coverage. This reality erodes morale among educators, discourages younger professionals from entering the sector, and undermines the quality of education.

Proposed Project

The South Sudan Social Insurance Fund (SSSIF) – Education Sector Pilot will serve as a trial initiative to establish, test, and refine a pension and social insurance scheme for public-sector teachers approaching or at retirement age.

Objectives

• Introduce a formal retirement benefit for eligible teachers to ensure income security after service.
• Pilot a contributory social insurance model that can be expanded to other sectors.
• Free up positions for younger teachers by enabling older educators to retire with dignity.
• Evaluate costs, sustainability, and effectiveness before nationwide rollout.

Key Features of the Pilot

• Target Group: Public school teachers aged 60+ or with 30+ years of service.
• Benefits Provided:
  • Monthly pension payments (indexed to cost of living).
  • Access to basic healthcare services.
  • One-time gratuity payment upon retirement.
• Funding Model:
  • Teacher salary contributions (2–5%) during active service.
  • Government contributions matched from annual education budgets.
  • Potential donor and NGO support for initial setup.
• Implementation Regions: Start with Central Equatoria, Upper Nile, and Western Bahr el Ghazal as pilot states.
• Administration: Managed by the South Sudan Social Insurance Fund Board in collaboration with the Ministry of General Education and Ministry of Finance.

Expected Outcomes

• Improved Welfare: Retired teachers enjoy financial stability and healthcare access.
• Education Quality Boost: Recruitment of younger teachers with updated skills and energy.
• Policy Blueprint: Evidence-based framework for expanding social insurance to other public sectors.

SSYR’s Position

As youth reform advocates, SSYR supports this pilot as both a social justice measure and a reform-driven policy to modernize South Sudan’s public service systems. This project aligns with our calls for:

• Transparent and accountable public finance management.
• Dignified treatment of civil servants.
• Practical reforms that open employment opportunities for the younger generation.