2 weeks Ago By NyasaAuthor1
NICO Life Insurance Company has embarked on elevation summits to sensitise Malawian citizens on how best they can prepare for life after retirement. One such summit took place at Sunbird Mzuzu Hotel on Friday after another one which was held in Lilongwe some weeks ago. According to NICO Life, many Malawians retire from different careers without proper planning for their retirement life and they struggle.
It is against this background that the summit brought together people from different work places to sharpen them on a number of topics including emotional and physical health as well as financial security. Chief Operating Officer for NICO Life Insurance Company Limited, Chimwemwe Kanyenda, said his company has an answer to how retirees can live a financially secure life. “We are geared to prepare individuals for their emotional and physical life as well as financial security.
Again, we are able to integrate retirement solutions with medical aid. For the youth, I would say there is no better time to plant a tree than now if you didn’t plant it twenty years ago. They too better start saving for their future now,” said Kanyenda.
In her presentation at the summit, Psychologist Dr Mathero Michelle Nkhalamba, shared some tips for a successful retirement life. “Isolation is one thing that retirees encounter. People transition from the work space for example, to having no social networks.
But it is possible to cope. One should maintain routine and active life. Keep on learning and exercise.
Continue with hobbies if you have some and continue connecting with friends,” explained Dr Nkhalamba. Dr Nkhalamba also touched on what she called black tax which is a challenge as one is preparing for life after retirement. “Black tax is the money that we share with our relatives and our extended families, usually with good intentions.
But as research has shown, this black tax can also deplete one’s retirement funds because one fails to save enough. It’s a cultural phenomenon but it has to be balanced. “Relatives should be empowered and not enabled.
When you empower someone, you give them the independence to survive financially on their own but enabling means that they are dependent on you to be giving them these cash injections every month. Strike a balance and limit your givings to make sure you save for your retirement,” she explained. NICO Life expects hold a similar summit in Blantyre Sharing is caring!.
