Global Courant
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The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) has launched the first eleven modules of the newly revamped Trustee Training Toolkit (TTK/toolkit) e-learning platform. The new toolkit is aimed at ensuring that retirement fund trustees are up-skilled with more comprehensive information that will enhance their knowledge and skills to better equip them in the exercise of their fiduciary duties in the retirement funds on which they serve.
“The revision of the TTK was substantive in nature and shows that governance principles are not static in nature and have to keep apace with changes in our environment, economy and society. Trustees as directors of the boards of retirement funds need to be constantly alive to changes in their environment, to make sure that they provide the correct stewardship to the long-term savings of workers. Given that retirement funds account for about R5.6 trillion in assets under management, we recognise their significance for the asset owners but also for the importance of the economy,’’ says Astrid Ludin, Deputy Commissioner of the FSCA.
The importance of trustee training and trustees having appropriate levels of skills are recognised and codified in S7A(3) of the Pension Funds Act (PFA) which provides that: board members elected/appointed to a fund must attain such levels of skills and training as may be prescribed by the FSCA, within six months from the date of their appointment. Board members are, in turn, required to retain the prescribed levels of skills and training throughout their term of appointment.
Consistent with international best practice and legislation in other jurisdictions, the fit and proper requirements for board members, in the form of skills and competence are provided for in the PFA. The FSCA through the TTK, aims to facilitate the training of trustees to get
Executive Committee:
Commissioner: U. Kamlana I Deputy Commissioners: A. Ludin I K. Gibson I F. Badat
them up to speed quickly, and help them maintain the required levels of competence in a rapidly changing environment.
Zareena Camroodien, Departmental Head of Fund Governance and Trustee Conduct at the FSCA said: “The FSCA has made a careful selection of relevant modules tailored to facilitate the training process through e-learning. The formative and summative assessments at the end of each module will help board members to assess their own progress. The TTK places a strong emphasis on fund governance, which is designed to equip the board of trustees to discharge their duties adequately”.
It is envisaged that after completing the TTK, trustees should be in a better position to assess and evaluate the quality of advice received. To this end, the TTK includes modules such as Governance, Contributions, Investments, Types of Benefits, Minimum Benefits, Protection of Benefits, Rules, Death Benefits, Effect of Divorce and Maintenance Orders, etc.
“South Africa has a well-developed retirement funds industry and a robust regulatory framework; however, we still see challenges in our environment. It’s for this reason the FSCA has identified trustee education and training as one of the Authority’s key areas requiring attention. The FSCA sees this as part of its broader programme to promote compliance.
Governance is the cornerstone of the preservation of retirement fund assets,” said Ludin.
The launch also received support from Institute of Retirement Funds Africa (IRFA), Batseta and Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). Trustees have six months from 26 September 2023 to complete the first eleven modules of the Toolkit,
FSCA launches its new Trustee Training Toolkit e-learning platform
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