The projection model is built on actuarially sound principles. It is capable of assessing the material provisions of the social security scheme, projecting its cash flows over the relevant projection period, and evaluating the chosen sustainability and adequacy measures, if appropriate.
Although financing policy varies by social security institution, many systems will have reserve funds that require effective management, whether these have a short or longer term time horizon. As populations age and the external investment environment becomes more complex, the importance of a well-managed reserve fund increases. Increasing focus on investment governance is likely to continue and professionals involved in the investment process need to ensure that their input is carried out appropriately.
The social security institution seeks actuarial input into the management of risks faced by social security schemes.
This guideline identifies some of the risks related to social security schemes, sets out the mechanisms to consider in addressing them through their identification, measurement and treatment using the risk management process set out in Guidelines 30, 31 and 32, and describes actuarial input into this process.
The social security institution should ensure that the skills and experience requirements of internal and external actuaries undertaking work for the organisation are well defined, adequate and monitored. The institution should support the efforts of actuaries in obtaining relevant qualifications and undertake training and continuing professional development activities as set out by national or international professional bodies.
The institution sets easy-to-measure standards for the various services it offers to difficult-to-cover groups across its service delivery network.
Social security institutions should effectively provide benefits and services that respond to the specific needs and circumstances of difficult-to-cover groups.
The specific guidelines in this section are:
The institution fully meets all statutory requirements with regard to reporting requirements, disclosure and access to information.
Internal communication is a powerful tool to create a shared understanding of the mission and objectives of the institution, and to improve cohesion, loyalty and engagement resulting in a collaborative environment across the institution.
The specific guidelines in this section are:
The institution establishes organizational structures that promote the good governance of the overall system and foster effectiveness and efficiency in achieving contribution collection and compliance goals, in line with national social security regulations and administrative principles.
Social security institutions are concerned not only with collecting contributions but also with keeping information about contribution periods and other matters related to social security benefits.
The institution cooperates with other institutions in adopting a systematic, workflow-based approach to managing prosecutions.
This will enable the development of a common process among all institutions involved in a prosecution, in order to coordinate actions and make them more consistent.
Transparent systematization adds value to the system since it gives a predictable character to the institution’s behaviour.
The following guidelines are organized in two parts.
Part A, Good Governance Guidelines for the Board and Management, provides some guidelines for the board and the management of the social security institution. The guidelines are aligned with the five identified good governance principles, including suggestions on governance structures and mechanisms to enable the implementation of the guidelines.
The board establishes a policy on disclosure of information that clearly defines the grounds on which the board may choose to exercise discretion in providing information to stakeholders.
The powers and responsibilities of the Head of Management and senior officers are clearly defined. There are no areas of ambiguity, dilemma or conflict of interest.
Predictability refers to the consistent and uniform application of the law, including the rules and regulations to implement it. Stakeholders are generally averse to sudden or unannounced changes in contributions to and benefits from the programme. The methodical application of the programme will strengthen stakeholder confidence and support for it.
The effectiveness of the strategic plan to advance the institutional mandate is evaluated. There is an assessment of lessons learnt from achieved goals, delivered targets and proven strategies, as well as unsuccessful initiatives. The performance review serves as input to the next cycle of planning activities.
For social security institutions that have a mandate to manage the investment reserve funds of the programme, whether through internal and/or external fund managers, the board and the management are duty bound to ensure that the funds are invested in accordance with basic prudential rules such as profitability, safety, liquidity and diversification.
The raison d’être of a social security institution is to administer the rights and obligations of members and beneficiaries. Efficient administration and the provision of quality service strengthen the credibility of the institution and enhance member and beneficiary support for it.
These three guidelines will assist in providing service quality standards to programme members and beneficiaries.
The ISSA Guidelines for Social Security Administration were prepared by the ISSA General Secretariat with the ISSA technical commissions.
The institution establishes processes to implement and manage ICT investments, acquisitions and contracts, taking into account (institutional and ICT-related) strategic plans, technology roadmaps and good governance principles, aiming at optimizing ICT value realization.
The purpose is to optimize the performance of the overall portfolio of ICT resources and related activities in response to programme and service performance and changing priorities and demands.
This section of the guidelines provides a high-level reference point for social security institutions applying interoperability techniques. The six guidelines which follow form a starting point from which institutions can develop their own policies and plans, and will assist in addressing the challenges of interoperability through a consistent and standards-based approach. The guidelines canvass the five dimensions of interoperability: political, legal, organizational, semantic and technical. The specific guidelines in this section are:
This section of the guidelines covers the types of mobile services which social security institutions might offer, and their technological and organizational implications. These may vary according to the current level of deployment of mobile technologies in the country and institution concerned. The five guidelines which follow will assist those responsible for developing mobile services to focus on the technical decisions and choices to be made. They take account of success stories in both social security and other types of institutions, and of all existing technologies.
The specific guidelines in this section are:
The institution defines an institutional architecture specifying the mechanisms to perform an effective and secure interaction between the institution’s systems and those at the national and international levels.
The institution puts into practice the ICT operations to implement international agreements complying with the corresponding SLAs. This is carried out in the context of the institution’s ICT operations, starting with an evaluation of the implications and requirements generated by the systems implementing international agreements.
The investment process is framed by reference to a risk budget aligned to the investment.
