Enrolment in the country’s Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) indicated by the number of Retirement Savings Account (RSA) holders show that male gender and younger people are dominating.
Data from the National Pension Commission (PenCom) reveal that during the second quarter of 2023, out of 63,693 registered RSA holders, 58 percent, equal to 36,783 are male, while 26,910 equal to 42.2 percent are female.
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A further review of the data on age distribution of the new RSA holders during the period under review shows that 52,079 representing 82 percent are active contributors below the age of 40 years.
A total of 8,359 of the new RSA holders representing 13 percent were within the age of 40-49 years. Those between the ages of 50-59 years accounted for 2,689 representing 4 percent while 566, representing less than 1 percent of the new RSA holders are aged 60 years and above.
The large number of young contributors registered under the CPS is indicative of the sustainability of the Scheme, PenCom.
Data in the first quarter of 2023 revealed that out of 83,653 people enrolled in the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and issued RSA PINs, about 84 percent or 70,407 of them were below 40 years, while 38,382 or 46 percent were below 30 years of age.
On gender distribution, the commission’s data revealed that 50,158 or about 60 percent of those that registered during the quarter were males, thus sustaining dominance over the female gender in terms of registration into the scheme
On outlook, PenCom says Nigeria’s economic growth remained subdued due to overhang of weak macroeconomic fundamentals including challenges associated with government’s fiscal position, decline in foreign exchange reserves, as well as inflationary and exchange pressures.
The economic outlook for succeeding quarters of 2023 appears optimistic as the benefits of ongoing policy changes begin to take effect.
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Pension funds are expected to continue to grow as the current higher yields on investment in fixed income securities would raise nominal returns. The equity market also provides opportunities for PFAs to take strategic position in sound, but undervalued stocks for long-term benefit.
The nation’s pension assets as at August 2023, stood at N17.29 trillion, indicating a 15.34 percent growth when compared with N14.99 trillion as at December 2022.
During the period, pension assets amounting to N11.47 trillion, equal to 66.3 percent where invested in Federal Government Securities, followed by Corporate Debt Securities, which accumulated 10.74 percent and Money Market instruments 7.51 percent.
Equities market took 9.32 percent of the total pension assets, amounting N1.611 trillion, while money market instruments accumulated 7.51 percent, equal to N1.298 trillion.
Aisha Dahir-Umar, said during an engagement with the organised Private Sector (OPS) in Lagos that the Commission has continued to take giant strides towards ensuring the smooth implementation of the contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), through the revision of existing regulations and guidelines and the development of new ones.
She said, specifically, the Commission has deployed the Enhanced Contributors Registration System (ECRS) for the pension industry.
“Following, the deployment of the ECRS, the Commission also introduced the Data Recapture Exercise (DRE), which mandatorily requires all RSA holders who joined the CPS prior to the 1st of July 2019 to update their information with their respective Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).”
Accordingly, the Commission has consistently urged RSA holders to approach their PFAs for Data Recapture, she said.
The PenCom Boss said in order to facilitate the implementation of Section 13 of the PRA 2014, which allows an RSA holder to transfer his/her RSA from one PFA to another at least once in a year, the Commission developed and deployed the RSA Transfer System (RTS) in 2020, adding that the RTS is a computer-based application for initiating, processing, and monitoring the RSA Transfer process and that it also ensures the seamless transfer of RSAs from one PFA to another.
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She said other key activities of the commission to which guidelines have been issued include – Equity Contribution For Residential Mortgage by RSA Holders in fulfilment of (Section 89 (2) of PRA 2014; access to equity finance for RSA holders in the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS); improve the standard of living of RSA holders under the CPS by facilitating their ownership of residential homes during their working life; improve enrolment in the CPS by providing incentives to employees who are yet to open RSAs, as well as provide a sustainable source of long-term finance to the mortgage sector and spur development in the housing sector.
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