The nation’s pension fund assets rose to N21.9 trillion as at the end of October, 2024 even as 10.5million workers from public and private sectors have so far joined the new pension scheme known as Contributory Pension Scheme(CPS) from inception in 2004 till October this year.
The fund had risen from N21.37 trillion in September 2024, translating to over N550 billion within the period under review while in August 2024, it was N21.13trillion.
Investment income, according to LEADERSHIP investigation, was instrumental to the continuous growth in pension funds, despite the fact that some governments at majorly, State level are not paying the monthly pension contributions of their workers as and when due.
Similarly, the huge increase, according to findings, was attributed to new pension contributions received, interest from fixed income securities and net realised on equities and mutual fund investments.
Reacting to this development at the 2024 Annual National Pension Commission(PenCom) seminar in Ikeja, Lagos yesterday, the director general of the commission, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran said: “Today, we have over 10.5 million contributors and oversee pension assets in excess of 21.9 trillion Naira as of October.
“This progress demonstrates the strength of our contributory pension system, but we are not without challenges. Inflation, for instance, continues to erode the purchasing power of pensioners, and we are actively seeking innovative solutions to address this issue.”
She added that the pension industry continues to face the persistent issue of delays in the payment of accrued rights, noting that, N44 billion was approved under the 2024 budget appropriation to settle accrued pension rights for retirees from March to September 2023.
Moving forward, she stated that, “we are working with the Federal Government to put in place a sustainable solution that ensures retirees receive their benefits promptly and without undue stress.”
Since assuming office, she said, her team and her have been focused on strengthening compliance, enhancing service delivery, diversifying pension assets to optimize returns, improving benefits, and expanding coverage to include more Nigerians, especially those in the informal sector.
The micro-pension initiative, in particular, she added, “is something we are very passionate about. It is our way of saying that no one should be left behind, no matter how small their earnings might be. Technology plays a vital role in driving this inclusion, from mobile enrollment to real-time account management to benefits administration. We intend to use technology to scale the micro-pension plan.
Disclosing that this year, the commission achieved a major milestone with the launch of the e-Application Portal for Pension Clearance Certificates (PCC) in October as this initiative replaces the previous manual process, enabling companies to seamlessly apply for and receive PCCs online. Since its deployment, ‘we have issued over 38,000 PCCs, significantly enhancing ease of doing business and ensuring compliance,’ he said.
Additionally, she stressed that the Pension Industry Shared Service Initiative is in advanced stages of implementation even as this initiative will digitise pension contributions and remittances, ensuring seamless processing of contributions and resolving discrepancies caused by incomplete remittance details.
Similarly at the seminar, the executive secretary/CEO, Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), Oguche Aguda, while applauding the contributions of pension fund operators toward growing the assets, assured pension contributions that their funds are in safe hands, attesting to the fact that, there has been no reported mismanagement of pension fund under the new scheme.
He disclosed that the operators are working with the pension industry regulator to address grey areas and smoothing things to ensure that the industry attracts more subscribers and gives investment values to stakeholders, including contributors, investors, among others.
(Leadership)
