Delegates from the National Social Security & Welfare Corporation attended the 15thInternational Conference of ISSA on Information and Communication Technology in Social Security in Casablanca, Morocco from 18 to 20 April 2018.
The conference discussed the potential of emerging technologies as well as the use of standardized and shared products as a basis for implementing innovative and cost-effective solutions for social security institutions.
The International Social Security Association (ISSA) is the world’s leading international organization for social security institutions, government departments and agencies. Founded in 1927 under the auspices of the International Labour Organization, the ISSA promotes excellence in social security administration through professional guidelines, expert knowledge, services and support to enable its members to develop dynamic social security systems and policy throughout the world. In compliance with its mandate, the ISSA organizes such conference on a regular basis.
This year’s conference on ICT was opened to ISSA members and invited participants only. NASSCORP, being a member since 1983, was in full attendance and represented by the Director General, Hon. Dewitt vonBallmoos who was accompanied by Mr. Leonardo Maxwell and Mr. Moses A. Garton, Coordinator and Assistant Coordinator of the IT Department, respectively.
Not only did the delegate from NASSCORP attend, but the Director General, Hon. Dewitt vonBallmoos, who is also the ISSA’s Chairperson of the Technical Commission on Investment of Social Security Funds, served as the moderator of the plenary session titled Cutting-Edge Technologies Impacting Social Security, on the second day of the conference, Thursday, April 19, 2018.
The speakers of the plenary session were Mr. Mortem Mererhoff Nielsen on technical partnership trends in digital identity management and public service delivery and Anders Norsker on cybersecurity – protecting critical information infrastructures. Mr. Nielsen is a researcher at Electronic Governance Unit (UNU-EGOV) and Tellinn University of Technology, United Nations University, Portugal while Mr. Norsker is the Chief of the Information Services Department, International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Also, the panelists were Mr. EgonVeermae, Director General, Estonian National Social Insurance Board, Estonia and Mr. Youssef Baz, ICT Manager, Interprofessional Retirement Fund, Morocco.
The conference officially concluded on Friday, April 20, 2018, leaving attendees and participants with immense knowledge and ideas on how to reshape social security administration and service delivery with new ICT solutions in their respective countries.
Hon. vonBallmoos was officially thanked by the Secretary General of ISSA, Mr. Hans-Horst Konkolewsky for sharing his experience and points of view on the key topics of the plenary session. In his communication, he emphasized on the manner in which the session was conducted, stating that it encouraged a high level of exchange. He also looks forward to continued collaboration and meeting Hon. vonBallmoos on the occasion of another ISSA event.