Four years after the first set of retirees started drawing their benefits under the 2004 Pension Reform Act, a total of 40,794 pensioners have been produced under the new pension scheme.According to the Director-General, National Pension Commission, Mr. Muhammad Ahmad, the pensioners have collected over N115.6bn as lump sum at the point of retirement, and are collecting about N1.3bn as monthly pensions.He said, There are currently about 40,794 retirees from the public and private sectors under the contributory pension scheme, who are collecting their monthly pensions either by programmed withdrawal or annuity.Since the inception of the scheme, he said assets worth N2.4tn were accumulated as at November.Ahmad said that during the year, the commission continued with the regulatory and supervisory philosophy of PenCom, which was risk-based and consultative, covering all activities of the commission with particular emphasis on issuance of guidelines and regulations; surveillance of licensed operators; compliance and enforcement; supervision of investment of pension funds; and maintenance of a databank on pension matters.He said the commission intensified efforts in the on-site inspection of employers, collaboration with regulatory and professional bodies, public enlightenment campaigns and applications of regimes of sanctions.He added that as part of its consolidation efforts, PenCom had raised the capital requirements for Pension Fund Administrators from N150m to N1bn , with the deadline set for June 2012.The commission, he noted, had aggressively intensified its compliance mechanism by taking legal action against defaulting employers.He said that the Bureau of Public Procurement had continued to support the industry by ensuring that service providers to the Federal Government complied with the BPP Act as regards the PRA 2004.Compliance by the informal sector, he added, received a major boost during the year, as the two million membership of the National Union of Road Transport Workers signified their intention to embrace the scheme, stressing that the industry was working towards registering them.
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