Pension: Great benefits for informal sector

Chuks Udo Okonta 

Great benefits await individuals from the informal sector that would embrace the  Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) as the National Pension Commission (PenCom) said they would be allowed to use their contributions as collateral for mortgage, health insurance amongst other benefits.

Director-General PenCom Mrs Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, who disclosed this in an interview with a national daily, said there would also be voluntary contribution   which  could  be accessed   not  more  than  four  times  in a year.

She said: "Section  2 (3) of the PRA 2014 provides  that employees  of organizations  with less than three employees  as well as self-employed   p
ersons  shall be entitled to participate  under the scheme  in accordance  with guidelines  issued  by the Commission.

" In pursuance   of the  statutory  responsibility   set  out  in Section  2  (3)  of the PRA,   the   Commission    has   already    developed    a   Framework    for   the Participation  of persons  operating  in the  Informal  Sector  of the economy  in the Contributory   Pension  Scheme.  The Guideline for the participation is also being prepared."

She noted that  the commission is on the verge of commencing   nationwide’ consultations with Informal Sector Unions, and Associations, stressing that during the consultations’   the inputs and comments of the Sector Union/Associations    on the draft Guideline would be collated.

"The strategies the commission intends to adopt in ensuring the participation of    persons    in   the    informal    sector    includes    awareness     campaign, collaboration    with   Unions   and   Associations    and   Town   Hall   Meetings. Incentives  like  apportionment   of contributions   where  one  portion  is treated as   savings   for   pension   and   the   second   portion   treated   as   voluntary contribution   which  could  be accessed   not  more  than  four  times  in a year.

  

"The contributions could also be used as collateral for mortgage, provision of health insurance etc.  The framework  also sets out the registration  process,  medium  of remittance of  contributions   which  would   include  the  use of mobile money  transfer, internet  banking  etc.  It also highlighted how benefit could be accessed by contributors," she said.