Bakar Maruashvili appointed as Chief Risk Officer of Pension Agency
By Nika Gamtsemlidze
Tuesday, August 13
The Director of the Pension Agency, Levan Surguladze, announced yesterday that Bakar Maruashvili would be appointed as the Chief Risk Officer of the institution.
According to Surguladze, the Chief Risk Officer is one of the most important functions that provide independent control over the process of investing retirement savings, at the level of each transaction.
“Risk control will be conducted according to the best international standards and with the use of modern methodology. Working on the policy of risk control, procedures, and methodology is already underway. Risk control needs to be a transparent process, so the procedures, methodology, and the periodic reports will be made public. Fully maintaining the risk control structure is a prerequisite for a successful investment process. The Risk Control structure is being staffed with the top professionals, including those with the technical expertise,” noted the director of the agency.
According to the new risk officer, the pension reform represents one of the most important economic changes in recent years in Georgia. As he noted, their main task will be to “check the consistency of investment processes and compliance with the investment policy document.”
Before transferring into the Pension Agency, Maruashvili served as the head of the Capital Market Development and Pension Reform Department of the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia.
As announced by the director of the agency, about 320 million GEL is already mobilized in the pension fund. According to Surguladze, the funds have accrued more than 5 million GEL. As he suggests, investing in savings will start in late September.
Also, the head of the agency talked about those who left the scheme, saying that most of them had low incomes and are mainly school and kindergarten teachers.
According to Surguladze, 141,000 people left the pension scheme, 41,000 of them being civil servants. On the other hand, as he said, the number of people who entered the scheme is 800 more than those who left It.
Surguladze hopes that as a result of information campaigns carried out by the agency, those leaving the system will return to the scheme.
“Reform has undeniable perks; such a large-scale reform is being implemented for the first time in Georgia, both economically and socially. There may have been some lack of information, but we have done everything we can and will do in the future for these people to return,” stressed the director of the agency.
According to the information of online platform on.ge, the director of the agency has received 157,500 GEL in 11 months as a salary. He was first paid his salary in November. The accrued amount was GEL 37,500, as the agency explains, this included 2.5 months' salary.
The Pension Agency has already spent 2,120,387 GEL during its 11-month work, which means that they have already spent all the money received from the state budget. More than half of the money spent was 1,306,731 GEL for the people working for the agency, for the office rent they spent 108,970 GEL, for advertising 105,366 GEL, etc.
The accumulated pension scheme is open to all employed or self-employed citizens of Georgia and foreign nationals residing permanently in Georgia. At the same time, participation in the pension scheme is mandatory for all employed citizens of Georgia, and a foreign citizen is permanently residing in Georgia, who had not yet turned 40 as of August 6, 2018.
