Accra, July 6, GNA - Vice-President John Evans Atta Mills said on Tuesday that social security schemes in Africa need to be re-engineered to be in tune with the socio-cultural realities of the continent.

Opening a three-day conference of the International Social Security Association (ISSA) in Accra, Prof. Mills said the time had come for Africa to rid its social security schemes of dogmas that might have served a passing age.

The conference, under a broad theme of "Social Security in Africa: New Realities," is being attended by the over 200 officials from Africa and personnel from ISSA as well as other related world bodies.

He said as the continent moves towards the new millennium with hope, progress and security for its people, social protection must be based on comprehensive and sustainable social security programmes.

Instead of studying our socio-cultural milieu with a view to developing schemes that harmonise with our social structures, we in Africa tend to follow conventional practice which may not always provide the best solution."

He said there is no one single solution to social security problems that can be applied to all nations in view of the diversity of cultures and lives of economic development.

The impact of social security programmes on the African continent, Prof Mills said, has not been felt markedly among the people.

Only a small fraction, mostly urbanised workers in most African countries, has been registered under social security schemes.

"The majority of our people in the so-called informal sector and in the rural areas - the farmers, fishermen, market women, petty traders and other vulnerable groups who need social protection most urgently - do not have social security protection," Prof. Mills said.

In Ghana, for instance, social security coverage is up to only 10 per cent of the working population as against 100 per cent in the industrialised world.

This, Prof. Mills said, calls for urgent attention of social security practitioners in Africa to go back to re-examine the policies that drive social security schemes in Africa.

Prof. Mills said developments, such as the accelerated pace of urbanisation in Africa, economic reforms which resulted in the restructuring of most organisations making people redundant and global shift towards privatisation have exposed many people in Africa to various risks.

"The time has come for all major stakeholders of social security in Africa to come together in our respective countries and review the existing social policies which underpin our social security systems."

The policies for Africa in the 21st century, Prof. Mills said, should clearly spell out the responsibilities and roles of all stakeholders.

"I, therefore, challenge this conference to come out with an Accra Declaration on social security for the 21st Century which will address the fundamental needs we have identified."

Most existing social security schemes in Africa took off after independence to benefit government employees and others in the formal sector.

The schemes operated on the selected needs of a minority of workers without taking into account the wider social protection needs of the entire population.

The conference, the 13th of ISSA specifically for the Africa region, will be an attempt to make the scheme more appealing to the wider segment of the population not covered.