We'll recover all debts owed us - SSNIT

The Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) on Wednesday said it would recover all debts owed it by beneficiaries of the Students Loan Scheme.

"Reclaiming the moneys owed us should not be a problem at all. At best, we would fall on the contributions of the guarantors to offset the debts," Mr Laryea Mensah, Head of the scheme told the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

Mr Mensah said the law allowing beneficiaries to pay their loans within a period 10 years after completion of their course and employment has largely contributed to the huge indebtedness, which stands at more than 183 billion cedis.

He cautioned beneficiaries to pay promptly so that guarantors would not be held responsible when they are due to collect their entitlements.

Mr Mensah said SSNIT is compiling a list of all beneficiaries whose loans have been outstanding for 10 or more years. It would then write to the beneficiaries to make good their payments within 42 days after which it would fall on guarantors' contributions to offset the loans.

He said two options are open to beneficiaries to pay their loans - using their monthly contribution to pay through an agreement with the SSNIT or through payment by instalment.

Mr Mensah, however, advised against paying with contributions, saying it would not make the contributor qualify for a pension.

A contributor qualifies for pension after contributing for 240 months or more. A lump-sum payment is given a contributor who contributes for less than 240 months.