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MemberNewsletterQ U A R T E R LY N E W S L E T T E R I S S U E 4 , 2 0 1 9

A total of $346 million was credited to over 379,000 Fiji National Provident Fund members’

accounts, after a 6.75% interest rate was declared for the financial year ending 30 June, 2019.

By July 1st, all members with positive account balances, would have witnessed a boost in their savings, due to the interest credited to their accounts.

Last year, FNPF declared an interest rate of 6.35% and paid out $297 million.

FNPF Chief Executive Officer Jaoji Koroi said that the interest declared was a testament of the positive flow-on effect of the FNPF Reforms and reflected the Board’s commitment to continue to grow members’ funds. The declared interest rates have been on a stable trajectory for the last 10 years.

Mr Koroi also clarified that the increase in the rate this year is attributed to one-off revaluation gains with the rates expected to normalize from next year.

“The increase in interest rate this year reflects the one-off revaluation gains recorded in the last financial year and some are also expected this year. Bulk of these gains came from our subsidiaries valuations after the adoption of IFRS 9. So we expect that the next year’s rate to moderate back to around ROI level”, Mr Koroi said.T

The FY19 interest rate is the highest ever to be declared by the Fund and is almost double what was credited 5

years ago.The Fund has paid a total of $1.15

billion in interest to members in the last four years reflecting the Fund’s strong financial position.

“Despite the competitive investment climate, the Fund continues to seek investment opportunities that will maximize the returns to members’ savings.”

$346 million paid to members 6.75

“The amount that each member gains will depend entirely on their average

balance during the year. Quite a few of our members have understood this and have

repaid or are in the process of repaying the funds they have withdrawn through the years so that it boosts their total savings, earning them more

interest in the process.”

6.75%

$297m

$346m

2019

Interest Credited (%) 2015-2019

FNPF has now paid over $1.37 billion in interest to its members in the last five years.

CEO, Jaoji Koroi addressing the media during a press conference on June 28, where the FY19 interest rate was announced

A multi-million dollar spend by the Fund to refurbish the Sheraton and Westin properties in Denarau for

the recent ADB Governors meeting, has helped establish Fiji’s status in the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions & Exhibitions) segment of the global tourism industry.

The two properties underwent major refurbishment works in preparation for the annual ADB meeting that was held from May 1st – 5th.

Chief Investment Officer Viliame Vodonaivalu said the Fund spent around $26 million on the major makeover of the properties, which was completed in four months to ensure it was ready by May 1st.

The Pre-ADB refurbishment was part of the entire planned upgrade for the two resorts when FNPF acquired the property in May, 2018.

Prior to the meeting, Fiji was never considered a specialized niche MICE market, but all that has changed!

“The ADB meeting was good publicity for our Hotel Properties (Sheraton/Westin & Intercontinental) and Fiji tourism as a whole to host MICE in the off peak tourist season,” said Mr. Vodonaivalu.

He adds that such a meeting had the potential to create more room nights for the resorts, positively impacting the owner’s returns.

With more than 3,000 delegates in attendance, the conference was the largest to be hosted in Fiji!

Getting the properties revamped and ready in time for the weeklong conference was certainly no mean feat!

Mr. Vodonaivalu said the extensive refurbishment works took four months, beginning in mid-December last year.

Makeover Magic

2 N E W S L E T T E R I S S U E 4

It involved a total make-over of the meeting facilities, building new breakout meeting rooms and a new satellite kitchen, as well as operational capex items.

“FNPF as owner, delivered the renovated properties in record time to facilitate the ADB conference.”

“Work was carried out by Fletcher Construction Ltd, and were contracted for the refurbishment of the ICC, Ball room, Chime Restaurant and a new satellite kitchen to cater for major meetings.”

“FNPF was directly involved in the procurement of major capex items; most of which had to be purchased and shipped in time for the ADB Meeting.”

“The key was having the right contractor and the right team which was vital for the delivery of a project of this nature, under a very strict timeline.”

“The Team from the FNPF Board, CEO, Investment and Finance Teams, all played various roles in the success of the project.”

“Having the right team was critical in delivering the project and having everything ready for ADB.”

“The team had to work long hours to ensure that the project was delivered before 1st May 2019. Hats off to the Team for all the sacrifices in ensuring that Government delivers on its promise to host the prestigious ADB event.”

Before

After


Since May 1st, FNPF members have been able to access the FNPF/Government Village Housing Grant

Assistance. This assistance is part of Government’s

First Village Home Building initiative that encourages home ownership for Fijians.

It allows Fijians to access a grant that can be used to either construct a home or complete construction of a dwelling house in the rural area.

There are two tiers in the income qualifying criteria under the grant:

1. Households that have a joint income of $50,000 or less, qualify for up to $15,000 assistance for the construction

of their homes or $10,000 if they are purchasing a ready-built home.

2. Households that have a joint income of $100,000 or less will receive up to $10,000 assistance for construction purposes and $5,000 for purchasing a ready-built home.

Members wishing to access this assistance must have a minimum eligibility amount of $2,000 in their account and they will be able to use their housing entitlement, if they haven’t used it already.

The grant is available for members to construct or complete a home in the village – provided they are a member of the Mataqali and have no other property

(or vacant land).It should also be the first time they will

be using their FNPF funds for a housing transfer.

Members who used their funds during the Tropical Cyclone Winston withdrawal assistance period, can also access the grant – provided they have not had prior housing withdrawals.

The total processing time for applications is 8 weeks (FNPF & Ministry of Housing Community Development).

Members who had applied for village housing withdrawal assistance after August 1st, 2018, will have the grant added to their request.


Two new board members have been appointed to the FNPF Board and they are Joel Abraham and Kalpana Lal.

Mr Abraham is the current CEO of the Fijian Competition and Consumer Commission – a position he’s held since September 2016.

He is a member of the Australia Institute of Company Directors, CPA Australia and Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.

Apart from the FNPF Board, he currently serves as the Deputy Chairman of the Fiji Meats Industry Board.

He holds a Master of Commerce in Professional Accounting as well as a Master of Arts in International Relations.

Mr. Abraham is passionate about promoting gender equality across all tiers of management and helping Fijians drive the implementation of socio-economic policies.

Ms. Lal is the Head of Administration and Finance at GIZ – Germany’s leading provider of international cooperation services.

She has served on various Boards and is currently a director on the Fijian Holdings Limited Board, and having recently been appointed as Chairperson of FHL’s Fund Management.

She is also a director on the Fiji Development Bank Board.

Ms. Lal is the first female to receive the Chartered Accountant of the Year award from the Fiji Institute of Accountants in 2017 and recently received the Excellence in Executive Leadership award during the 2019 Women In Business Awards.

She is a member of CPA Australia and holds a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Accounting and Financial Management and minor in Information Systems.

New Board Members

Govt. Housing Grant now open

FNPF continues to form strategic alliances with regulatory authorities, government ministries and financial

institutions to ensure that employers meet their statutory obligation.

Last month, FNPF signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Water Authority of Fiji, in an effort to better coordinate data sharing.

The MOU was signed on June 20 by WAF General Manager Customer Services and Acting General Manager Operations, Mr Sekove Uluinayau and FNPF Chief Executive Officer Mr Jaoji Koroi.

Mr Uluinayau said that the MOU is aimed at assisting WAF and FNPF in terms of exchanging information, authenticating employment data and ease of process.

“This agreement will also serve as a form of compliance check for tender, procurement process, contracts, as well as the updating of employee details,” explained Mr Uluinayau.

He adds that the MOU enables WAF to verify the data collected from its affiliates, preferred suppliers, principal suppliers, principal contractors and subcontractors enlisted under the Authority’s ‘Data Collection System’ to the FNPF.

“Under the MOU, WAF will provide FNPF with employment data captured from its Data Collection System and in turn the FNPF will assess the data and provide the validated employment data back to WAF on a quarterly basis or on a request basis for urgent matters,” said Mr Uluinayau.

FNPF CEO Mr. Koroi said that MOU was indicative of the Fund’s willingness to collaborate and share information with key stakeholders.

“Compliance is a shared responsibility and we have forged similar partnerships with key stakeholders to help us acquire the data that will assist both parties in carrying out their respective corporate objectives, also ensuring that compliance to the law is paramount,” said Mr Koroi.

“We are grateful to WAF and other organizations that have agreed to share information because it helps us and them.”

“Ultimately for the Fund, it is the social protection of our members that drives us to become involved in partnerships such as this,” said Mr Koroi.


Payments for voluntary accounts are now enabled through the myFNPF mobile app as the Fund continues to

digitize service capabilities for members.Voluntary members will now be able

to pay their contributions using the app, through MPaisa.

Vodafone has also allowed all their subscribers to be defaulted MPaisa customers, which further eases the process.

At the moment this payment service is available for Vodafone users only, however plans are afoot to make it available to Digicel subscribers too.

Earlier this year, in April, the Fund improved the app allowing individuals to register as a voluntary member.

This latest enhancement now means

that individuals can not only register as members, but can make payments to their accounts too.

The provision of digital services empowers our members and removes the need for them to visit any of our offices, allowing them to carry out their retirement savings business from the comfort of their homes, offices or wherever they are. Members will also save time and money in the process.

The myFNPF App is a safe and secure way of monitoring retirement savings. It’s also an easy and convenient way to plan one’s retirement.

Members can also view their nominess and download or email their annual/ interim statements.

Partnership sealed

Voluntary members can pay through app



In December last year, Tevita Balemaiono harvested 22 yaqona plants, for which he received more than $5,000.He used that money to upgrade his

canteen business in Vutuna Village in Nairai, Lomaiviti.

He is also a member of the Rural Maritime Advisory Council and receives a monthly allowance but apart from that, he is also a fisherman – selling his catch to the Agro-Marketing Authority on a fortnightly basis, depending on the shipping schedule.

Mr. Balemaiono said that he had been hearing about FNPF’s Minor Voluntary Scheme on the radio and had seen the advertisement on television.

And the more he heard about it, the more he knew that it was the solution to his dilemma, to save for his son’s future.

He has two sons – one in class one and the other one is 18 years old.

For a while now, he had been wanting to open his younger son’s savings account but thought that he could just keep depositing

funds into his older son’s account.He said he wanted to start saving as

soon as possible for his younger son’s high school and tertiary education.

His only concern was that since it was in a bank account, it could be easily accessed.

So when he heard about the minor voluntary scheme, he knew it was the solution he was looking for.

During his visit to the capital city in April, Mr. Balemaiono was happy that the FNPF Retirement Expo was going on at the Downtown Boulevard

He made sure he had all the required documents to open a minor voluntary account when he visited the Suva Expo and was quite happy knowing that his son would have his very own FNPF account.

He said that the profit from his canteen business would be deposited to his son’s account.

“This is good – because we (parents) can put aside money for our children’s future.”

“My target is to deposit $50-$100 and I want this money to be for my son’s

Investing for the future

education.”He added that not many in his village

know about the minor voluntary account and said that he would spread the word about it.

“Sa ka vinaka saraga qo. Levu mai na koro era sega tu ni kila, ia au sa na lai wasea saraga na kena vinaka me rawa talega ni ra dolava na nodra na luvedra.” (This is such a good product. Not many in the village know about it but I will tell them about it so that they can also open their children’s account)

For some members, when you retire, all you will want to do is travel the world and live a life of leisure with no

worries in sight. This is of course not a reality in many cases.

For most, being able to sustain yourself after 55 years is critical, ensuring that you are independent and are self-reliant.

Meet Siteri Laginikoro, a 63 year old FNPF pensioner from Somosomo in Taveuni.

Ms Laginikoro had opted for Joint Pension when she turned 55 in 2013

and whilst attending the FNPF Retirement Expo in Taveuni in June, she attributed her decision to join the FNPF pension to her uncles.

“I am very thankful to my uncles for encouraging me to join the FNPF pension scheme who were both FNPF pensioners at that time. I took their advice and I’m reaping the rewards of a good decision”, Ms Laginikoro said.

“Back then, my uncles were already on pension. One is still alive now, is on pension and he is 80 years old”

The 80 year old uncle she was referring to was Mr Anasa Qio who also visited the expo earlier to submit his renewal certificate.

Ms Laginikoro was employed by Wacipoki Limited for over 20 years. When she reached 55 years she took pension and joined again as a re-entered member. Once her employer ceased operations she converted to Voluntary membership and religiously contributed.

“I visited the expo because I wanted to check how much I had saved so far and I was gladly surprised with my current balance.”

Ms Laginikoro runs a canteen business and pays her voluntary contributions via MPaisa monthly.

“I am getting old but I am at ease knowing that I continue to save through FNPF with the monthly contribution I make through voluntary membership.”

“A lot of my friends who opted for lump sum have died. Stress is when you have no money. I am thankful to FNPF and I’ve also been encouraging those that I know to join the Voluntary scheme, because even I know how beneficial it is. Vinaka FNPF”, Ms Laginikoro said.

Uncles’ advice proves fruitful

Mr Waqairawai chats with Anasa Qio at the Expo


FNPF signed two Memorandum of Understanding through its fully owned subsidiaries Barton Ltd

(Sheraton) & Dubbo Ltd (Westin) with the Y3 Gopher Trust which is the owner of iTaukei land at Denarau Island.

The MOU was signed on April 27 by the Tui Nadi Ratu Vuniyani Navuniuci on behalf of the landowners and FNPF’s Chief Investment Officer Viliame Vodonaivalu, representing the resort owners.

The MOU stems from the 99 Years Lease Agreements that were issued by TLTB to Barton Ltd and Dubbo Ltd after the landowners gave majority consent for the renewal of the leases.

The purpose of the MOUs is to administer the benefits to landowners that

arise from the terms and conditions of the two leases.

The term of the MOUs is for 5 years, beginning January 1st 2018 and ending on 31st December, 2022.

It outlines the opportunities at the two resorts which the landowners can access - provided they meet the requirements and standards of compliance.

In his address to the landowners, Mr. Vodonaivalu said that “FNPF has delivered on its promise during the negotiation stage for the new leases, in terms of the payment of $8.75m as premium, increase in annual rentals for the two properties to 3.5% of gross receipts and additional LOU benefits as detailed in the MOU. Like the MOU, the premium and the annual rental is

the highest to be offered in Denarau”.

He thanked the landowners for placing their trust in FNPF during the acquisition process and rendering their support by giving their consent for the renewal of leases.

He adds that the blessings of the Tui Nadi and the Vanua o Navatulevu were critical to FNPF’s bid to acquire the two properties that were located on iTaukei Land, and therefore followed the

proper iTaukei traditional protocols. Mr. Sekove Tuilakeba, who is the Director

of Business and Investments for the Y3 Gopher Trust said that this is the first of its kind for the Denarau Landowners, as they have never signed an MOU with any other hotel owner on Denarau Island.

He acknowledged FNPF’s continuous support towards the landowners ever since it came on board to acquire the two resorts from Marriott International.

Mr. Neeraj Chada, GM for the two resorts was also present and congratulated the landowners for the milestone achievement and pledged Marriott’s support in terms of providing business opportunities within the resorts.

Agreement to Administer Landowners benefits

Adi Talatoka Osborne Singh or better known as Adi, last checked her balance in 2016.

And when she casually visited the FNPF Retirement Expo in Sigatoka in May, she was in for a shock

“I absolutely loved the expo and at this age, I now have a fair idea of how I will plan my retirement. I was quite shocked (in a good way) to know how much I had in my account”, she says.

Adi was impressed with the services of the FNPF staff who guided her through options available that will ensure that she has a more meaningful retirement.

“I have always procrastinated on options however now that I am better informed I am definitely becoming a voluntary member so I can save more”

Adi challenges members

Since leaving Vodafone Fiji in 2011, Adi lived abroad with her family in New Zealand for four years and then traveled back and forth to the United States.

She recently returned with her family and currently resides in Sigatoka.

She walked away from the expo convinced that she will also register her 10 year old son as a minor voluntary member. Adi has even called on other members and the general public to take advantage of the FNPF Voluntary membership scheme and to also keep updating their FNPF account.

“When you save in a retirement plan, you’re putting the power of tax-deferred compounding interest to work for you. Your money can grow faster because earnings that could have been taxed get reinvested and earn even more”.

She also managed to file her Memorandum of Administration and signed up for the member online portal.



Approximately 4,000 members have visited the Fund organised retire-ment expos in Suva, Sigatoka and

Taveuni this year.The expo, themed ‘It’s easy to save’ aims

to create the level of awareness needed to ensure that members are able to save enough for a comfortable retirement.

FNPF General Manager Member Services, Mr Alipate Waqairawai said that by spread-ing the word, members are empowered to make the right choices regarding their savings and ultimately, their future.

“The Fund as the custodian of members’ retirement savings is mandated to conduct these sort of awareness to ensure that our members are provided with all the information they require to make good de-cisions about their future”, Mr Waqairawai stated.

“We’ve decided to hold an expo focusing solely on FNPF products and services that are available to members to help them make informed decisions on their retire-

ment plans”, he added.During the Sigatoka and Taveuni expos,

the team also managed to visit employers and conduct compliance checks.

“We are taking a more holistic approach during the expo period whereby we are not only facilitating the expo, but we are also conducting community awareness ses-sions as well as visiting our employers”, Mr Waqairawai said.

Majority of the members passed through the Housing Assistance booth, followed closely by those enquiring about ways they can boost their balances, be it through Additional Contributions, or by joining the Voluntary scheme for the self or unem-ployed.Services provided during the expo were:• Housing assistance/queries• Employee Additional Contribution• Nomination queries/updates• Retirement and Counselling services• Balance and general enquiries• Online registration

• Minor voluntary registration/queries• Adult voluntary registration/queries• Memorandum of Administration

Members are also requested to contact the FNPF Member Education and Advocacy department to request for an awareness session to be conducted at their work place or community.

The Member Education & Advocacy team also took time to conduct awareness sessions during the

week of the Sigatoka Expo for police officers at the Sigatoka Police Station and the Provincial Administrator for Sigatoka, Ms Ruth Atu.

The presentation was led by GM Member Services Alipate Waqairawai.

“We encourage our members to invite us for awareness at their communities, or

even workplaces. We are ready to answer any questions and dispel any doubts or rumours circulating on social media; also re-instilling member confidence in the process”, Mr Waqairawai adds.

Ms Atu extended an invitation to the FNPF team to also conduct an awareness session at their upcoming Head of Division meeting scheduled for the end of this month. The team provided general FNPF services after the awareness.

Advocacy continues

MEA’s Isikeli Nute assists Sigatoka Provincial Admininstrator Ruth Atu.

Retirement expos a hit

Chief IT Officer, Rukshan Rajapaksha talks to members at the Taveuni Expo

FNPF staff (left) serving members at the Taveuni Expo


Fijians living and working in the Cook Islands will be able to transfer their retirement savings from the

Cook Islands National Superannuation Fund to the Fiji National Provident Fund, once their employment ceases.

A memorandum of understanding signed in (May) by the Fund and CINSF will ensure the social protection of Fijians working in the Cook Islands.

Chief Executive Officer Jaoji Koroi said that it has taken two years to formalize the MoU and reiterated the need to have in place such initiatives to protect Fijian nationals working abroad.

“This MOU enhances the protection of Fijian workers in the Cook Islands, most of whom are in the tourism industry.”

“Upon the expiry of their employment contracts, they can transfer their superannuation savings to their FNPF account in Fiji, where they would be able to access pre-retirement and full withdrawal benefits under our policies and procedures.”

“Some of these workers, who have returned to Fiji, can now enjoy these

benefits rather than wait until they are 60 years old to return to the Cooks and apply for their funds.”

The Cook Islands legislation does not allow members to access their funds until they are 60.

CINSF Chief Executive Officer Damien Beddoes echoed the same sentiments stating that they have protection measures on their members’ especially international workers.

He termed the agreement between the two Funds as a “fantastic protection”

program.“We have set up additional structures

to protect our international workers that will ensure that employers comply and pay what is due to these workers; and therefore protecting the interest of our members and their retirement savings”, Mr Beddoes adds.

Mr Beddoes has also acknowledged all Fijian workers in Cook Islands for their contribution and support to their host country.

Social protection for Cook Islands Fijians

A PENSIONER and a memberNetani Jiko is currently a pensioner

and also a re-entrant member. He turned 55 years old in 2012 - at

the same time that the pension reforms started.

After listening to the reforms rationale, he decided not to withdraw his funds – like many were saying – and instead opted for a pension.

He took a portion of his funds as partial lump sum withdrawal and paid off his home, while the other portion he put in his pension account.

Since he continued working after turning 55, he joined the Fund again as a re-entrant member.

He’s spent more than 22 years at Carpenters Shipping and continues to work there to this day.

So when he visited the FNPF Retirement Expo in Suva in April, he was on a mission.

“I heard about Additional Contributions and knew that this was what I needed because I wanted to grow my savings faster, especially when I know that I only have a few years left to work.”

Now 63 years old, Mr. Jiko wanted to find out how the additional contributions would

benefit him and was convinced that it was what he wanted after a chat with Minnie Sekonaia of the FNPF’s Member Education and Advocacy Team.

“If I knew about it before, I would have signed up earlier.”

“I had read in the newspapers that this (FNPF) is a good place to save compared to other financial institutions, where it’s easy

to withdraw your money.”“Here, you can only take your money

when you retire and that’s good because that’s the purpose of FNPF.”

That hasn’t stopped Mr. Jiko from investing in other places too – and he currently has shares in the Unit Trust of Fiji and Fijian Holdings Limited.

“But there’s no other institution like FNPF – it’s a good place to keep your savings and offers one of the best interest rates.”

“It’s better for members to keep their money in FNPF because of the good interest rates and they will be able to see how fast their money grows.”

He said that sometimes, people would see the balance in their account and be tempted to withdraw funds.

Asked whether he had signed up for the FNPF E-Services, Mr Jiko said he would rather not have it because he would keep looking at his balance.

Jiko

Mr Koroi and Mr Beddoes seal the deal with a handshake.



Giving back to the community is familiar ground for staff of the Fiji National Provident Fund.

This is one agenda that is in line with the Fund’s current corporate culture

program, espousing the values and spirit of stewardship.

More recently, staff from four different departments in the Fund carried our their corporate social responsibility initiatives that included visitations to St Christophers Home, Father Law Home, the homeless in Suva City and mangrove planting in Lautoka.

The senior citizens of Father Law Home were treated to dinner and entertainment by the Contribution Collection & Compliance team in May.

In early June, the Business Transformation Division distributed dinner and packs of blankets, socks

Staff give backand beanies to the homeless on the sidewalks of Suva City. This is a tradition for the business unit which started its homeless initiative in 2015.

Last month, the children of St Christophers Home were visited by the Member Services Division bearing gifts and a water tank.

The FNPF Western team spent a Saturday at Viseisei, Vuda, stabilizing the coastline and preventing erosion from waves and storms, by planting mangroves and trees. The team managed to plant a total of 400 mangrove seedlings and 152 tree seedlings, contributing to the Forestry Ministry’s “plant 4 million trees” program.

The expenses for these community initiatives were fully funded by FNPF staff.

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