Uche Usim, Abuja
The National Pension Commission of Nigeria (PenCom) has paid N164.12 billion as death benefits to families of 53,237 deceased workers in public and private sectors in Nigeria under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The figure is derived from an additional N8 billion paid as death benefits to the families of 2,426 deceased employees between July and September, 2018.
Cumulatively, the total number of deceased employees from both the public and private sectors stands at 53,237, while total payments of death benefits is N164.12 billion.
Information from PenCom shows that, from the inception of Contributory Pensions Scheme (CPS) in 2004 till the third quarter of 2018, 38,853 federal workers, 4,231 states’ workers and 11, 618 workers from the private sector died during this period and their respective next of kin have accessed their death benefits.
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The benefiting families were able to access this fund because their deceased family members subscribed to the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) and had been contributing to their respective Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA), while alive.
The CPS seeks to, among other reasons, ensure that every worker receives their retirement benefits as and when due.
According to PenCom, one of the grounds on which a contributor can access the benefits under the CPS is through the mandatory retirement as stated under Sections 7 and 16 of the PRA 2014.
A retiree must be at least 50 years or must have retired from service on attainment of maximum allowable length of service (generally 35 years in the public sector).
A worker can withdraw 25 per cent of the amount in his RSA. He can also withdraw his voluntary contribution, which is the extra contribution made above the 18 per cent stipulated remittance in his RSA.