Thieng started receiving his pension since January 1977 after many years of hard work and dedication.

He participated in the revolution in his younger days, then he served as Secretary of the Party Committee of Po E Commune, District Commissioner and later head of the district’s Fatherland Front.

Thanks to his pension of about VND4 million (US$173), Thieng now lives comfortably with his children and grandchildren without having to work hard in the fields like many elderly people.

Illustrative image (source: internet)

The monthly pension is not much, but in his poor village, it is more than the income of an ethnic-minority household.

Thieng said when he received the pension, he would divide it into several parts, one to buy food and necessities, one to support his grandchildren’s studies and another to save for emergencies.

He said his children worked as farmers, so their income was not enough to cover daily needs.

Thieng added: “I am truly grateful to the Party, State and the insurance sector.”

“Thanks to the pension, I can live well,” he said.

“Thanks to the health insurance card, I don’t have to worry about medical expenses when I am sick and have to go to the hospital for treatment,” he said.

Many others in the province understand the value of the social insurance policy.

Some even save their income every day to participate in voluntary social insurance to accumulate for the future.

Illustrative image (source: internet)

Bui Minh Nhat, of Mai Hac De Street in the province’s Kon Tum City, said he already chose to participate in voluntary social insurance after he stopped compulsory insurance.

Minh said he knew that when he did not have a stable income, he could face financial risks if he had health problems.

Therefore, he decided to participate in voluntary social insurance to complete the social insurance period to be eligible for receiving a pension and health insurance card when he was no longer of working age, he said.

Nhat said when he was young, he worked as a freelancer. When he was 45 years old, he applied for a job as a security guard at a kindergarten and started participating in compulsory social insurance.

He turned 60 at the beginning of this year. However, at that time, he had only 15 years of participating in social insurance.

In the meantime, according to the provisions of Article 54 of the 2014 Law on Social Insurance, male employees from 55 to 60 years old, and female employees from 50 to 55 years old, will receive pensions during retirement after having paid social insurance premiums for at least 20 years, including a full 15 years working in areas with a region-based allowance coefficient of 0.7 or higher.

Thus, Nhat decided to pay voluntary social insurance for an additional five years to be eligible to receive a pension and be granted a free health insurance card during his retirement.

As a result, Nhat now receives a monthly pension of VND1.5 million ($65).

He said: “The money is not much, but at least it could help me in not depending on anyone.”

He also received a health insurance card to take care of his health during retirement, he added.

“The health insurance card gives me more peace of mind because diseases are unpredictable,” he said.

Nhat’s wife also has pension, so their life was currently stable, he said.

Statistics of the province’s Social Insurance Agency show that the number of people participating in social insurance is 47,246, including 8,023 people participating in voluntary social insurance by the end of April.

It proved the belief of local people in the social and health insurance policies, thereby affirming the role of social and health insurance as a pillar in ensuring the welfare rights for all classes of people./.