Nigeria’s pension assets hit N32trn

Emma Ujah, Abuja Bureau Chief

Nigeria’s pension assets have risen to N32 trillion, the Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, has disclosed.

Receiving a delegation from Kenya’s Retirement Benefits Authority in Abuja yesterday, she disclosed that the assets were approximately 10.4 percent of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

She said growth in pension assets over the years reflected the sustained success of the country’s pension reform implemented since 2004.

Represented by the Director of the Surveillance Department, Abdulrahaman Muhammad Saleem, the Director General highlighted the remarkable growth recorded under Nigeria’s CPS since its introduction.

The D-G said the industry’s growth has been driven by consistent regulatory reforms, stronger governance standards and enhanced supervisory mechanisms designed to protect contributors’ funds and improve retirement outcomes.

She described the Federal Government’s recent settlement of outstanding accrued pension rights liabilities as one of the most significant milestones in the history of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).

“The intervention addressed a longstanding challenge that had left many retirees from Treasury-Funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) facing prolonged delays in accessing their accrued pension rights because of funding constraints and delayed budget releases.

“The issuance of a Federal Government bond to settle the accrued rights liabilities has transformed the retirement experience for public sector employees. Accrued pension rights are now transferred directly into retirees’ Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA), enabling immediate access to investment returns and eliminating lengthy waiting periods.

“The issuance of a Federal Government bond to settle the accrued rights liabilities has transformed the retirement experience for public sector employees. Accrued pension rights are now transferred directly into retirees’ Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA), enabling immediate access to investment returns and eliminating lengthy waiting periods,” she stated.

Ms. Oloworaran noted that while significant progress has been made, PenCom remains focused on advancing reforms to further strengthen governance, enhance retirement security, and ensure the long-term sustainability of the CPS.

The four-member Kenyan delegation, led by John Keah, Director of Market Conduct and Industry Development at the RBA, is in Nigeria to understudy PenCom’s regulatory and supervisory frameworks.

Speaking during the opening session of the visit in Abuja, John Keah, said the engagement reflects the importance of cross-border learning among pension regulators seeking to strengthen retirement systems and improve pension outcomes for their citizens.

According to him, Kenya and Nigeria share several structural similarities in their pension landscapes, making Nigeria’s experiences particularly relevant to ongoing reforms in Kenya.

“We are here to learn from Nigeria’s experiences and assess how some of those lessons can be adapted to our own environment. We are particularly interested in PenCom’s ESG initiatives, risk-based supervision framework, strategies for expanding pension coverage to the informal sector and the Diaspora Pension Arrangement,” he said.