According to numbers issued on Friday by the National Pension Commission (PenCom), total assets under the Contributory Pension Scheme increased to N14.2 trillion in May.
The National Pension Commission’s latest report, titled ‘Unaudited report on pension funds industry portfolio for the period ended 31 May 2022; Approved Existing Schemes, Closed Pension Fund Administrators, and RSA funds (Including unremitted contributions @CBN & legacy funds),’ contained this information.
The funds’ value increased from N13.42 trillion at the end of December 31, 2021 to N13.61 trillion and N13.76 trillion at the end of January and February 2022, respectively.
According to the figures, it increased to N13.88tn by the end of March and N14.06tn by April.
The data showed that N8.8tn of the total funds was invested in Federal Government securities, comprising bonds and treasury bills.
Other investment portfolios where the funds were invested included: domestic and foreign ordinary shares; corporate debt securities comprising corporate bonds; corporate infrastructure bonds; corporate green bonds, and supranational bonds.
PenCom also disclosed that the total number of workers with Retirement Savings Accounts rose slightly to 9.67 million by the end of May, from 9.529 million at the end of December 2021.
According to the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria, the CPS is helping Nigerian workers to save for retirement and providing funds for infrastructure development.
The operators urged workers to increase their statutory deductions, noting this would enable them to raise their aggregate savings balances over time.
In a statement, the association said, “It is also pertinent to note that the Contributory Pension Scheme in its current state has in no small way fostered a savings culture in Nigeria. Before the enactment of the Act, Nigeria did not have large pools of domestic savings.
“Many Nigerians do not have any other form of savings, except through this contributory pension scheme. What we should be doing as a nation is to encourage more of these savings rather than looking to dismantle the system.
“This is probably the only form of savings most Nigerian workers can put aside for their retirement years.”
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