The National Pension Commission (PenCom) today said that the nation’s pension assets under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) have increased from N7.52 trillion in December 2017 to N8.23 trillion in June this year
The commission’s Acting Director General, Mrs. Aisha Dahir-Umar, made the disclosure during the 3rd annual conference of the National Association of Insurance and Pension Correspondents (NAIPCO) held in Lagos.
She attributed the sustained growth of the assets to new contributions received, interest/ coupon from fixed income securities and net realised/unrealised gains on equities and mutual fund investments.
Dahir-Umar, who was represented by the commission’s Head, Benefits Department, Lana Loyinmi, said that the number of contributors had also risen from 7.89 million reached last year to 8.14 million by June this year, as 312, 291 employees joined the pension scheme from between January and June.
According to her, as part of efforts to enhance the monthly pension of retirees under the scheme, the commission initiated the Person Enhancement Programme (PEP).
In addition, the pension expert said that it was discovered that the returns being generated by the PFAs on the balances of RSAs of majority of retirees could be used to enhance their monthly pensions.
She pointed out that based on the discovery, the commission requested for and obtained the approval of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to implement the PEP, which resulted in increased monthly pensions for most retirees receiving pension under the programmed withdrawal arrangement.
The Pencom boss explained that the implementation of the pension enhancement was one of the significant achievement recorded by the commission since the commencement of the CPS, noting that CPS has workable internal mechanisms to respond to legitimate demands of retirees as they seek a reasonable retirement income.
Dahir-Umar hinted that the commission intended to sustain the periodic review exercise in line with relevant provisions of the law.
