EPF resorts to public disclosure
In an apparent public relations exercise, the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) on Thursday took out newspapers advertisements to provide some aspects of the 2013 accounts before the presentation of audited financial statements in parliament.
The preparation of the audited statement by the Auditor General (AG) will take some time as it is a complex procedure, a senior official of the EPF Department said. He said only after the AG’s audit is ready that the report will be presented to parliament.
However the 2011 accounts in which the AG’s report is already ready is yet to be presented to parliament.
Acting Deputy Superintendent of EPF Department J.D.S.J. Nanayakkara said that the unaudited 2013 accounts have been submitted to the Minister of Finance and Planning and Minister of Labour and Labour Relations. He said publishing of EPF financials in the newspapers has been done in the past too. But another senior official said that the recent row relating to the loss of Rs. 11.7 billion in EPF investments made in 58 companies in the stock market highlighted in the 2011 AG’s report may have been prompted the release of the 2013 financials.
According to EPF’s 2013 financials, investment income from equities including investments in the stockmarket has increased to Rs. 3294 million in 2013 from Rs. 2899 million.
Income from government securities has also increased to Rs. 131,368 million in last year from Rs. 117,159 in 2012. The EPF net income after tax grew to Rs. 125,610 million in 2013 from Rs. 111,829 million in 2012.
The net worth of the fund has risen to Rs. 1,299,974 million last year from Rs. 1,144,409 million.
The rate of interest paid on member balances was up by 0.5 percent to 11 per cent while investments increased to 13.7 per cent last year from 12.2 percent in 2012.