To spread awareness through its investor education programme 'Jamapunji', the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) in collaboration with the National Rural Support Program (NRSP) conducted an awareness session for the employees of NRSP at its Head office in Islamabad. The session stressed on the need for acquiring requisite knowledge before taking financial investment decisions.
Focus of the event remained the Voluntary Pension System (VPS), a segment regulated by the SECP. The senior SECP officers elaborated the potential benefits of investing in VPS through qualified fund managers and also highlighted the risks involved. The session was particularly value added as NRSP's employees are already invested in VPS. SECP's senior officers not only answered their questions but also gave detailed explanation of the regulations governing VPS.
Giving product background, differences between conventional government pension schemes Vs. VPS were explained. Similarly differences between Shariah compliant funds VS. conventional funds, withdrawal conditions and risk profile switch options during the life of the product were discussed. In addition to providing clarity on fee structures and the importance of monitoring net asset value (NAV) through periodic account statements and the sms service provided by fund managers was also stressed.
The session was attended by NRSP General Manager Agha Ali Jawad and other senior managers representing various functions of the organisation. In his closing remarks, Jawad thanking SECP for the seminar specifically highlighted the need to have more such sessions for employees stationed at regional offices of NRSP across Pakistan.-PR