The Marshall Islands retirement investment fund enjoyed a banner year in 2013, but a manager says the fund needs to be saved by legislation.
The fund, managed by the Florida-based Investor Solutions, earned at over 12 percent for the 2013 fiscal year, ending the year on September 30 at $59.7 million.
A money manager, Frank Armstrong, says even this type of investment return will not solve financial problems facing MISSA, problems that need to be addressed through changes to legislation governing the retirement system.
Despite the investment gain, MISSA withdrew over $5 million to meet payments to retirees because taxes collected are significantly lower than the amount due to beneficiaries.
Recent actuarial reports show that the MISSA fund has only about one-quarter of the money needed to meet its long-term retirement obligations, which are pegged at over $225 million.
Mr Armstrong says in order to fix the situation, the Marshall Islands will need to make changes to its retirement system.
