Nigeria’s biggest Pension Fund Administrator (PFA), Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited, has announced that it would be continuing its nationwide campaign to raise awareness about retirement planning.
The campaign, which was launched three years ago, is part of initiatives aimed at encouraging retirement planning amongst Nigerian workers and employers, the company said.
About 600 participants are expected at the forum to be held in Nigeria’s commercial capital, Lagos, on Thursday April 21, 2016, where participants will gain very valuable tips from seasoned experts and regulators on the imperative of putting in place effective plans to ensure a smooth transition to retirement.
Lagos is the first among key cities across the country to host the forum this year, with similar sessions slated for Abuja and Port Harcourt in July and September respectively. This year’s campaign has the theme, “Life Continues at Retirement – Retire well”.
Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited, Mr. Eric Fajemisin, stated that the interactive sessions are aimed at providing stakeholders, particularly people approaching retirement, a platform to have a clear view of the path to a comfortable retirement, while removing the stress of pondering what will happen when the individual disengages from active service.
Apart from being an avenue for updating participants on new developments in the pension industry, the forum is also an effort to shape industry agendas, the ultimate goal being to highlight benefits of the country’s nascent pension scheme, which will enable Nigerians harness the opportunities, Fajemisin said.
“Part of our objective in organizing a forum like this is to encourage people to take advantage of the provisions of the Pension Reform Act 2014 to prepare for retirement now, and avoid severe financial difficulties during old age.”
Fajemisin counselled employers of labour who have yet to embrace the new pension scheme as stipulated under the enabling Act to do so, so as to guarantee a secure retirement for their employees. “We believe that people, especially employers of labour who have yet to embrace the new pension scheme as stipulated under PRA 2014, will use this opportunity to come on board and ensure secured retirement for their employees,” he stated.
He added that Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited was set up with a mission to enable Nigerians retire well after their working lives. “We want to help people plan for their retirement to ensure that the retirement phase is as rewarding and productive to them as possible,” he stated.
Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers is a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings, a member of Standard Bank Group, a full service financial services group with a clear focus on three main business pillars – Corporate and Investment Banking, Personal and Business Banking and Wealth Management.
Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets and earnings. It is rooted in Africa with strategic representation in 20 countries on the African continent, including South Africa. Standard Bank has been in operation for over 153 years and is focused on building first-class, on-the-ground financial services organisations in chosen countries in Africa and connecting other selected emerging markets to Africa and to each other, applying sector expertise, particularly in natural resources, globally.
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