Total assets under the Contributory Pension Scheme rose by N640bn in four months to N14.06tn- National Pension Commission.
The funds, which ended December 31, 2021, at N13.42tn, rose to N13.61tn and N13.76tn as of the end of January and February 2022 respectively. It rose to N13.88tn by the end of March, according to the data. The data shows that N8.56tn of the total funds as invested in Federal Government securities, comprising bonds and treasury bills.
Other investment portfolios which the funds invested included: domestic and foreign ordinary shares; corporate debt securities comprising corporate bonds; corporate infrastructure bonds; green bonds, and supranational bonds. PenCom disclosed that the total number of workers with Retirement Savings Accounts rose slightly to 9.648 million by the end of April.
Nigeria lacked huge pools of domestic savings prior to the Act’s passage. “Many Nigerians do not have any other form of savings, except through this contributory pension scheme. Rather than dismantling the system, we should promote more of these savings as a society. “This is probably the only form of savings most Nigerian workers are able to put aside for their retirement years.”
Ivor Takor, Director of the Centre for Pension Rights Advocacy, said the system was entirely funded by monthly contributions made to employees’ Retirement Savings Accounts.
-Punch.