In its efforts to address some of the misconceptions surrounding pensions in Nigeria, leading pension funds administrator, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers hosted a virtual forum on the theme, “The Pension Myth Busters”, on Wednesday.
The Stanbic IBTC Pension Myth Busters is a platform that aims to address some of the views held by a section of the public, which is based on past events regarding pensions administration in Nigeria, that tends to discourage pension plan adoption.
The event had in its panel pension experts from Stanbic IBTC, who shared professional views with the attendees and was also used to enlighten the public on the importance of having a pension plan during years of active service ahead of retirement, and things to be mindful of when seeking a pension fund administrator.
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Members of the panel included; the founder of Ope Farms, and a member of Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, Mrs. Olusola Sowemimo, Legal Practitioner, Olamilekan Bamidele, Head of Business Development at Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, Yinka Johnson, Head of Investment Management at Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers. Jide Allo, Head Benefits Administration Shared Services at Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, Peace Thomas-Dawam.
Speaking on how having a pension has helped in living the dream life she had anticipated after retirement, Mrs. Olusola Sowemimo stated that “incidentally, I would say that Stanbic IBTC made it quite easy for me, because, about five years to retirement, they actually came in to educate us on what retirement should be like and how we can attain that.
“They made us increase our voluntary contribution, I had that confidence that things were going to be fine and I am glad to say that in fulfillment of that expectation has been met. We are paid right on time every month as they have never missed a payment”.
When asked what fears she had about getting access to her pension after retirement and what the reality has been for her, Mrs. Sowemimo stated that “I didn’t have much concern, because, I did my homework, I realized that Stanbic IBTC had paid close to N1 trillion Naira in benefits since they started and they had paid over 65,000 retirees.
So, I had that confidence that I was going to be fine. I honestly did not have any fears”.
Addressing how those in the informal sector can benefit from the pension scheme, Yinka Johnson said, “the industry has come together with the pension commission and have come up with a pension solution for people in the informal sector.
“So, people that before now could not participate either because they did not have the minimum number of employees in their company or they are not in the formal sector, sports personalities, people with small businesses, all this category of people can now have a pension account, called the micro pension account.
“The difference between the contributory pension scheme and the micro pension scheme is that it is voluntary and you can contribute as many times as you want in a month. or weekly”.
