Category: Pension

Consolidated Insurance Plc (CHI) has unveiled the first nationwide microinsurance company in Nigeria.

The new firm CHI Microinsurance Limited  has taken off with plans to insure about 100 million uninsured grassroots dwellers.

Speaking at the unveiling of the  firm at its office in Anthony, Lagos, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), CHI Plc, Mr. Eddie Efekoha, said the firm will leverage the opportunities in the grassroots to make headway.

He promised that as a pioneer national micro-insurance outfit, the new firm will partner artisans, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Microfinance Banks (MFBs), cooperative societies, trade associations, among others.

He said: “There are about 100 million people in the micro segment of the nation’s economy. This presents opportunities for us as a firm targeted towards insuring that segment of the society.

“We have assembled the right people for the job and we can promise you that CHI Microinsurance will pay your claims as and when due, and will offer customers the best of insurance services. ”

Similarly, the Managing Director of the new firm, Mr. Pius Kariaren, said the firm has cemented a relationship with some groups that deals with the grassroots, a development that will give his company an edge in the retail segment of the market.

He said: “We want to be the fore-runner by ensuring that the masses have insurance. Artisans, micro businesses are our target. To this end, we are starting with five products, namely, CHI Esusu Plan, CHI Credit Plan, CHI Cooperative Society Plan, CHI Welfare Plan and CHI Group Life Plan. Players in this segment should approach us for the best policy to underwrite their respective risks.”

Earlier, the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. Sunday Thomas, who was represented by the Director,  Authorisation and Policy, Mr. Leo Akah, said the regulatory body created a microinsurance segment of the market to cover the gap left by the conventional insurance companies as most of them are interested in the formal and corporate market, thereby leaving the informal and the micro segment uninsured.

Thomas urged more investors to come into the microinsurance business to ensure that people at the grassroots were insured.

He urged the company not to turn down any genuine claims, promising that NAICOM will give the firm the support to survive and excel.

Similarly, the Director-General, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), Mrs. Yetunde Ilori, advised the firm to be a good role model for other microinsurers that might be coming behind, urging them to be a pathfinder and pay genuine claims.

To ensure that pensionioners are alive, Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate, (PTAD) has launched ‘I Am Alive’ confirmation platform, an online application.

Its Executive Secretary, Dr. Chioma Ejikeme, said the platform was designed to enable pensioners under the Defined Benefits Scheme (DBS) to  perform to enrol from their homes or neighbourhood using either a smartphone or a computer.

She made this known during the launch at the Northcentral Stakeholders’Forum, in Ilorin, Kwara State.

She stated that the solution takes the pensioner through a three-step  process that ends with a text message.

She said the Directorate has decided to deploy the application in phases, starting with 50,000 pensioners who cut across the four departments and the six geo-political zones, selected to participate in this pilot phase.

She said: “On the successful implementation of this pilot phase, we will deploy the application on a full scale at predetermined intervals on a continuous basis for all verified pensioners on the payroll.

“We will conduct the exercise here on some of you as you have been informed, so you can see and understand how it works. Other pensioners who are part of this pilot phase have equally been notified by PTAD via SMS. We earlier promised that the era of bringing out our aged pensioners for field verification is over, and we stand by our promise.”

The pension system continues to provide succour following the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant job loss in the country, the Director and Head, Communications Department, National Pension Commission (PenCom), Mr Peter Aghahowa, has said.

He spoke at the Insurance Journalists Conference in Lagos.

He said the pandemic has help the commission and operators to use information technology better than ever.

He added that a lot of the processes in the industry had been automated.

He noted that clients who were contributors under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) were served better.

‘’Even the operators have looked at how they can deliver service to contributors in a more professional way,’’ he said.

The Chief Executive Officer, Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOP), Mr. Oguche Agudah, affirmed that the pandemic has affected the sector in various ways.

He said: “People are losing their jobs but have been able to accessed their 25 per cent after four months. This is something that has shown the strength of the system and the in-built safety net within the pension system.

“Operators not been having to go to work is one of the fall out in the industry. But it has also helped us to digitalise our services and now people are working from home.

“Retirees can access their pension benefits without having to come to our offices and this has help save them a lot of time.’’

RABIU: I am Rabiu, a retiree of the Nigerian Railway Corporation. I wish to inform your office of the Director-General, National Pension Commission that I retired on June 28, 2013 as a Station Superintendent 1 on salary grade level 10 step 6. I was promoted after verification on July 30, 2012. I will be grateful if you could use your good offices to update my record and pay my retirement benefit based on my retired designation. Thank you.

PENCOM: Please write to the National Pension Commission stating the subject of your letter as “promotion after verification”.

Also, please attach relevant  documents to validate your complaint. Thank you.

IFEANYI: I wish to know if I am a beneficiary of the 2.5 per cent of pension arrears. I retired in April 2012 and my Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) is FGPL.

PENCOM: Please be informed that you are not eligible for the 2.5 per cent pension arrears as this took effect from June 2014 when the rates of contributions were reviewed upwards. Thank you.

GLORYFILL: My name is Gloryfill. The name of my mother is the late Mrs Bassey. She worked at the General Hospital Calabar, Cross River State. She was in active service before her death on May 16, 2014. We have submitted all relevant documents that were required yet no response. Please help us. I don’t know if she had PFA. Thank you.

PENCOM: To enable the commission carry out investigations, please provide your late mother’s details such as name, RSA details as well as the name of the pension fund administrator (pfa). Also, who did you submit documents to?

ANNONYMOUS: I want to remain anonymous. I retired on June 2, 2021 and I was told that we were to do online screening. Please, when will the screening start and when will I be paid?

PENCOM: Please be advised that the online enrolment application went live on 1 September 2021. Please visit  http://www.pencom.gov.ng to initiate the process and then proceed to your pension fund administrator (pfa) for physical verification and enrolment. Thank you.

IBRAHEEM: May God continue to bless you for your concern about retirees’ plight. My compliant is on my accrued right of Batch 51 that was paid into individual PFA since August 3. However, up till now nobody has been called for template so that the money would be paid. Please does reconciliation of account take that long after some retirees have been waiting for almost two years without collecting their benefit.

PENCOM: Please provide your RSA PIN details as well as your full name to enable the commission investigate further.

BASSEY: My name is Bassey. I retired in 2017 but my benefit has not been paid since then. Kindly help me.

PENCOM: Investigations revealed that your retirement benefits have been processed. Please liaise with your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA).

JANE: My name is Jane. I worked as Social Media/HR Manager of Cedarmount School, House 2, R close off First Avenue, FESTAC extension from December 2020 to June 2021. The proprietress deducted pension and tax without remitting same. I prevailed on her to open a pension fund account for the school which she reluctantly did with AIICO Pension without funding. My PFA is Stanbic IBTC Pension. I want PenCom to come to my rescue by making her remit my pension deductions.

PENCOM: Please write a letter to the Commission, stating the non-remittance of pension contributions as the subject. You would also need to provide name as well as the address of the employer in your letter.

MRS ANEKE:  I want you to help me get my late husband pension, who died on July 11, 2018. I am suffering with five children and no house to stay. The aviation authorities sent me out of the house my husband and I lived before he died since August 3, 2019. The Nation is my last hope. My late husband PIN is anonymous. Kindly help me.

PENCOM: Please be informed that your late husband’s benefits are being processed and once payment is made, you will be notified by the Pension Fund Administrator (PFA).

NNANNA: Good morning, Omobola. My name is Nnanna. l am a contributor with Crusader Sterling Pension. I am an ex-banker, who is on his own now. I am 48. What is the possibility of accessing funds from my contribution to assist my business? I accessed 25 per cent of my contribution six years ago when l lost my job with a bank. Kindly put me through. Thanks, and best regards.

PENCOM: Please be informed that you cannot access your Retirement Savings Account (RSA) again until you attain 50 years. Please visit your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) for more information.

IFADA: Thanks for platform for concerned citizens to allay their fears and express their worries. Please, why are people not getting their lump sum a year after their retirement. This was not the spirit and intent of the Pension Reform Act 2004. Somebody retired in June 2020 and up till now the lump sum has not been paid. Ditto the monthly stipend. What’s going on?

PENCOM: Please be informed that a Presidential Approval was given for the payment of outstanding pension liabilities under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and as such, these outstanding pension liabilities are being processed and very soon payments will be effected. Once payment is effected, you will be contacted by your Pension Fund Administrator (PFA).

OKECHUKWU: My name is Okechukwu, a retiree from Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB). Since October 2020, my pension has not been paid. This is after I attended the verification conducted in March 2021, my penison. At present, my landlord has given me quit notice. I cannot feed my children any longer. I am sick and can’t get money for medical treatment. Please I need your intervention.

PENCOM: Please forward your Retirement Savings Account (RSA) details i.e. PIN and Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) in order for the Commission to investigate further. Thank you.

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AfricInvest, a Pan-African asset management company, has acquired a minority stake of N3.6 billion in Royal Exchange General Insurance Company (REGIC).

The investment was made through its private equity fund, FIVE, in form of a subscription to a capital increase.

The Managing Director, Ben Ajili who made this known at a conference in Lagos, stated that the desire to participate in more large-ticket  transactions, diversify its business and product lines as well as diversification of delivery channels were some of the key drivers behind this push for more working capital.

He said the more capital would enable the company to expand its underwriting capacity in key businesss such as the retail mass market, agricultural insurance and insurtech, he said.

He said: “This new investment, which has already been approved by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) will, in addition to supporting the enhancement of REGIC’s underwriting capacities, strengthen the company’s execution capabilities at top and middle management in order to ensure the successful implementation of an ambitious growth plan for the company within the next five to seven years.

“REGIC, one of Nigeria’s biggest private insurance companies, was established in 2008, following the restructuring of the then Royal Exchange Assurance Nigeria (REAN) which had been in operation for over a century in Nigeria. FIVE has joined the shareholding of REGIC alongside the Royal Exchange Group and Blue Orchard’s InsuResilience Investment Fund (IIF), which had earlier invested in the Company in July 2019.

“The investment by AfricInvest (FIVE Fund) will also result in the restructuring of the Board composition of REGIC, with the expected appointment of new Directors to the Board of REGIC, pending approval by the regulator, NAICOM. These new Directors are expected to bring their wealth of experience and expertise in their various fields into play and chart a new strategic direction for REGIC, as the company seeks to be among the Top 3 general insurance companies in Nigeria within the next 5 years.

The Chairman, Royal Exchange Plc, Mr. Kenneth Ezenwani Odogwu, added: “Being the first insurance company in Nigeria and having been in business for over 100 years, I am excited and hopeful that we will be just as prominent for the next 100 years. The investment by AfricInvest and Blue Orchard is an important inflection point on this journey.’’

 

Women have been urged to adopt the best approach to career growth, health and wellness.

At its virtual Ladies At The Table Empowerment Series (LATTES) organised by Stanbic IBTC Pension Manager, the women were told to balance their career with their health.

Spaeking at event tagged ‘Balancing career success and personal wellness’,  the firm’s Group Chief Human Resources Officer, Interswitch, Mrs Tolulope Agiri, stated that many factors, including family and societal issues, affect women.

The HR expert pointed out that women are judged by various rules  compared to men even when they are competent for certain roles.

She emphasised the need for women to have a strong support system to get ahead in their careers.

She said: “What makes the lives of women complex is not just their lives but what is happening in the society. One of the major things that have been talked about is a support system. The support system is critical, be it people or technology.

“It is important to bring the men in your life into the conversation. The choice of a life partner in an important factor to consider for single women to excel in their careers.”

Agiri also advised women who are creating value in their places of work to make demands that will make their work easier.

“We need to start negotiating for ourselves. Find out how your employers can make your work easier. Women who aspire to be leaders should be more ambitious than before; act like managers in any position you find yourself. Work in synergy with your employers to make things work,” she said.

Chief Executive Officer, Carib Health Limited, Dr Sherese Ijewere, speaking on the topic: ‘The genius of the extraordinary chromosome’, urged women to be intentional and attentive to what they eat and pay attention to the effect different kinds of food have on their bodies.

Advising women to live a healthy lifestyle, Ijewere said: “Good nutrition is self-care because our relationship with food has the ability to impact every aspect of you, yourself and who you are to others”, adding that it was important to listen to the body.

The Executive Director, Business Development, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, Nike Bajomo, said the event was timely and strategic, as it is coming at a period where people are learning to adapt to the new normal.

 

NO fewer than 70,00 workers in the informal sector have embraced the Micro Pension Plan (MPP) under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) as at August 2021, the National Pension Commission has said.

The figure, however, is mere 0.07 per cent of the 90.21 million workers in the nation’s informal sector.

Data obtained from the Commission has, however, shown that the number is set to rise following some actions by it.

It was learnt that PenCom had mandated Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) to commence the submission of yearly media campaign plans, aimed at getting the more informal sector workers into the pension plan. This is coming two years after the launch of MPP

PenCom stated this in its Framework for Enlightenment  and Public Awareness For The Micro Pension Plan sent to PFAs in August.

The commission stated that this is in line with Section 2.2 of its circular on service delivery by PFAs.

PenCom noted that sequel to the release of the guidelines for the Micro Pension Plan, it identified the need to intensify enlightenment to on the MPP as a critical success factor.

It maintained that the framework spelt out the modalities for the Commission and Pension Fund Administrators to ensure effective and sustained enlightenment and public awareness drive of the MPP.

PenCom submitted that Section 2(3) of the PRA 2014 stipulates that employees of organisations with less than three employees as well as self-employed persons, shall be entitled to participate under the Scheme in accordance with Guidelines issued by the Commission, adding that Section 23 (f) of the PRA 2014 mandates the Commission to “carry out public awareness, enlightenment and education on the establishment, operations and management of the Scheme”.

 

HASSAN: My name is Kabiru Hassan. I work with the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC). I need your assistance on my pension fund.

My Retirement Savings Account (RSA) has not been credited for seven years – 2012 to 2018. I only received  some moeny on September 29, 2021 for 2017 remittance.

My PEN N0 is Anonymous. I will be very glad if my request will be considered. Thank you.

IFEANYICHUKWU: My name is Ifeanyichukwu, I want to appeal to the National Pension Commission to kindly review the payments of 2.5 per cent  to Federal Government’s retirees to be paid directly to their  bank accounts to reduce their hardships.

Spreading the 2.5 per cent as pension monthly on Programme Withdrawal or Annuity will invalidate and contradict our original agreements made and signed by retirees.

RABIU: I am Rabiu, a retiree of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC). I wish to inform the office of the Director-General, National Pension Commission that I retired on June 28, 2013 as Station Superintendent 1 on salary grade level 10 step 6. I was promoted after the verification on July 30, 2012.

I will be grateful if you can use your good offices to update my record and pay my retirement benefits based on my retired designation. Thank you.

ABDULLAHI: Good day, my name is Abdullahi, the son of the late inspector Etubi. You earlier informed me that everything had been settled. We were asked to provide our father’s name and RSA PIN to enable the commission to investigate further which we have provided. We were told in The Nation publication that we are among the next batch to be paid. But we are yet to be paid.

Kindly help.

OLADIPUPO: Dear Omotola, my name is Oladipupo. I really appreciate the time and energy you  expend on pension complaints. This is my third writing without a response. I have no issues with my PFA, Stanbic IBTC. But I often read about life pension, statements of account and pension investment. My question is: When do we really access to pension?

IFEANYI: I retired in April 2012 and my PFA is FGPL. I wish to know if I am a beneficiary of the 2.5 per cent of pension arrears.

OLUKAIYEJA: Dear Omobola, what is happening to the Retiree Bond for those of us who retired from the Federal Civil service in January 2019?

Hunger, frustration and embarrassment are killing us.

Also, the 2.5 per cent refund by the Federal Government has not been paid into my personal account and hasn’t reflected in my monthly pension.

The credit alert only informed me that my RSA had been credited instead of my personal account. Please let me know what is happening to my money. Thank you.

GLORYFILL: My name is Gloryfill. The name of my mother is Mrs Bassey. She worked at the General Hospital, Calabar Cross River State. She was in active service before her death on May 16, 2014.

We have submitted the documents that we were asked to bring, yet no response. Please help us.

I don’t know if she had a PFA. Thank you.

ANNONYMOUS: I want to remain Anonymous. I retired in June 2, 2021 and I was told that we are to do online screening. Please when will the screening start and when will I be paid?

UZOMA: I retired as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) since 2017. The Federal Government promised to make better our poor take-home monthly pension after we demonstrated in Abuja last year by telling us police retirees to register at the nearest police state headquarters.

We have done that since February, this year, yet nothing has come forth. Please help us.

ANNONYMOUS: I work as a marketing officer in a micro finance bank for four years but the bank folded up. i wanted to collect all the money that I save, but I was told that if I am not up to 50 years, I cannot collect all my money that I save. Kindly explain this for me. The name of the bank is Ovidi Microfinance Bank, Okene, Kogi State and has been liquidated for three years.

UKEJE:  I retired from Nigeria Custom Service in 2016 on grade level 10. We read that Mr President have released 7.5 to 10 percent being the back log of people that retired from 2014 till date. The N33,000 I receive every month has not been affected, thanks.

THE NATION: The newspaper will intervene. Therefore HASSAN, IFEANYICHUKW, RABIU, ABDULLAHI, OLADIPUPO, IFEANYI, OLUKAIYEJA, GLORYFILL, ANNONYMOUS, UZOMA, UKEJE should look out for the newspaper next week for responses from PTAD.

HASSAN: My name is Kabiru Hassan. I work with the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC). I need your assistance with my pension fund.

My Retirement Savings Account (RSA) has not been credited for seven years – 2012 to 2018. I only received some money on September 29, 2021, for 2017 remittance.

My PEN N0 is Anonymous. I will be very glad if my request will be considered. Thank you.

IFEANYICHUKWU: My name is Ifeanyichukwu, I want to appeal to the National Pension Commission to kindly review the payments of 2.5 per cent to Federal Government’s retirees to be paid directly to their bank accounts to reduce their hardships.

Spreading the 2.5 per cent as pension monthly on Programme Withdrawal or Annuity will invalidate and contradict our original agreements made and signed by retirees.

RABIU: I am Rabiu, a retiree of the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC). I wish to inform the office of the Director-General, National Pension Commission that I retired on June 28, 2013 as Station Superintendent 1 on salary grade level 10 step 6. I was promoted after the verification on July 30, 2012.

I will be grateful if you can use your good offices to update my record and pay my retirement benefits based on my retired designation. Thank you.

ABDULLAHI: Good day, my name is Abdullahi, the son of the late inspector Etubi. You earlier informed me that everything had been settled. We were asked to provide our father’s name and RSA PIN to enable the commission to investigate further which we have provided. We were told in The Nation publication that we are among the next batch to be paid. But we are yet to be paid.

Read Also: Pension complaints and solutions

Kindly help.

OLADIPUPO: Dear Omotola, my name is Oladipupo. I really appreciate the time and energy you  expend on pension complaints. This is my third writing without a response. I have no issues with my PFA, Stanbic IBTC. But I often read about life pension, statements of account and pension investment. My question is: When do we really access to pension?

IFEANYI: I retired in April 2012 and my PFA is FGPL. I wish to know if I am a beneficiary of the 2.5 per cent of pension arrears.

OLUKAIYEJA: Dear Omobola, what is happening to the Retiree Bond for those of us who retired from the Federal Civil service in January 2019?

Hunger, frustration and embarrassment are killing us.

Also, the 2.5 per cent refund by the Federal Government has not been paid into my personal account and hasn’t reflected in my monthly pension.

The credit alert only informed me that my RSA had been credited instead of my personal account. Please let me know what is happening to my money. Thank you.

GLORYFILL: My name is Gloryfill. The name of my mother is Mrs Bassey. She worked at the General Hospital, Calabar Cross River State. She was in active service before her death on May 16, 2014.

We have submitted the documents that we were asked to bring, yet no response. Please help us.

I don’t know if she had a PFA. Thank you.

ANNONYMOUS: I want to remain Anonymous. I retired in June 2, 2021 and I was told that we are to do online screening. Please when will the screening start and when will I be paid?

UZOMA: I retired as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) since 2017. The Federal Government promised to make better our poor take-home monthly pension after we demonstrated in Abuja last year by telling us police retirees to register at the nearest police state headquarters.

We have done that since February, this year, yet nothing has come forth. Please help us.

 

 

 

 

ANNONYMOUS: I work as a marketing officer in a micro finance bank for four years but the bank folded up. i wanted to collect all the money that I save, but I was told that if I am not up to 50 years, I cannot collect all my money that I save. Kindly explain this for me. The name of the bank is Ovidi Microfinance Bank, Okene, Kogi State and has been liquidated for three years.

 

UKEJE:  I retired from Nigeria Custom Service in 2016 on grade level 10. We read that Mr President have released 7.5 to 10 percent being the back log of people that retired from 2014 till date. The N33,000 I receive every month has not been affected, thanks.

 

THE NATION: The newspaper will intervene. Therefore HASSAN, IFEANYICHUKW, RABIU, ABDULLAHI, OLADIPUPO, IFEANYI, OLUKAIYEJA, GLORYFILL, ANNONYMOUS, UZOMA, UKEJE should look out for the newspaper next week for responses from PTAD.