The Social Security System (SSS) is on track for a record-setting year in terms of registering new members after it hit 2.4 million new registrants in the first semester of 2024.
The number of new SSS members from January to July 2024 surged by 165 percent to 2.4 million, from 923,000 recorded in the same period last year.
“SSS took the challenge and even went the extra mile. In the first six months, we hit our year’s target of two million new members, a positive result of our massive membership and coverage drives throughout the country,” president and chief executive officer Rolando Ledesma Macasaet said in a statement Sept. 26.
He said that this milestone reflects SSS’ commitment to expand its membership and reach all working Filipinos, adding that, in previous years, the average was around one million new members annually.
SSS executive vice president for Branch Operations Sector Voltaire Agas said the highest number of new members came from prior registrants, totaling 1.2 million. Prior registrants are individuals who already have SS numbers but have not yet been reported as covered employees, or self-employed members.
“We observed a significant increase in new self-employed members, which surged by 273 percent, from 112,000 in 2023, to 419,000 in 2024. Also, the number of new OFW members more than doubled, rising to 10,300 in 2024, from just over 5,000 last year,” Agas explained.
Data showed that Luzon recorded the highest number of new members, with more than 882,000. The National Capital Region came in second with over 693,000 new enrollees. Mindanao and Visayas followed with 436,000 and 417,000, respectively. Over 10,000 new members came from international operations.
Agas said one of their initiatives to expand membership was the Nationwide Registration Day on July 15. “In a single day, SSS successfully registered more than 26,000 new members in the e-services booth set up in activity centers of partner-malls and establishments.”
Macasaet expressed optimism they could reach four to five million new members by the end of 2024. “SSS will sustain this growth trajectory in the coming months as we aim for a historic peak in new member registrations.” ||
