Jamsostek has new board of directors

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

State Minister for State Enterprises Sugiharto replaced on Monday the board of directors of state-owned insurance company PT Jamsostek, asking them to increase the number of policy holders and improve the welfare scheme for them.

"I expect the new management to widen Jamsostek coverage to workers nationwide," he said after installing the new board.

Iwan P. Pontjowinoto was named Jamsostek president director, replacing Achmad Djunaidi. Previously, Iwan served as a deputy to the state minister.

Sugiharto told the new management that apart from increasing assets and profit, the insurance company should also help the government's program in the provision of a social security scheme for workers.

"Jamsostek has fallen short of its target for the past three years," he said.

Data from the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration shows that only 60 percent of an estimated 40 million workers in the formal sector are enrolled in the social security program.

Jamsostek had targeted an increase in its policy holders by 1.91 million, 2.5 million and 1.82 million from 2001 to 2003 respectively, but only managed to add 1.75 million, 1.73 million and 1.59 million respectively.

Iwan said the new management would continue to seek every available opportunity to raise the number of participants among the country's workers.

Jamsostek's previous management succeeded in enrolling 17,000 expatriates in its social security program and is eyeing another 1.5 million of the country's overseas workers.

"We will also manage our funds better, avoiding putting them in only high-return investments," Iwan said. "We will, for example, focus on providing housing loans for our participants."

Jamsostek disbursed Rp 295 billion (31.7 million) last year to help workers buy low-cost houses and build low-cost apartments in industrial zones in North Sumatra, Riau, Jakarta and South Sulawesi. The company plans to build more cheap apartments in Jakarta and its outskirts, Surabaya and North Sumatra.

The company will pay a 8.5 percent interest rate for its pension funds -- 2.5 percent higher than commercial banks -- on the back of Jamsostek's net profit of Rp 3.3 trillion from its investments last year.

Jamsostek's current assets stand at Rp 33 trillion collected from 23 million workers, with 80 percent of Jamsostek's total assets worth Rp 33 trillion derived from pension funds.

However, the firm was recently under fire for investing Rp 100 billion worth of bonds in the now defunct Bank Global.

Jamsostek's new board of management

Position New board Old board
President director Iwan P. Pontjowinoto Achmad Djunaidi
Investment director Iskandar Z. Rangkuti Samuel Tobing
Financial director Tjarda Muchtar Indra Haryadi
Operations director BM Tri Lestari Armon Arleg
Human resources & general
affairs director Andi Ahmad BM Tri Lestari

Source: Office of the State Minister for State Enterprises