As President Bola Tinubu’s administration is preoccupied with various reforms, government and other stakeholders have been urged to pay serious attention to pension management and administration in the country.
Senator Shuaib Afolabi Salis made the call at the unveiling of a book: titled: “Understanding Pension Administration and Management in the Contemporary World”, in Abuja, on Wednesday.
The book is authored by the Head, Internal Audit Unit of Pension Transition Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Dr Imran Saheed Adekunle.
The lawmaker representing Ogun Central Senatorial District, in his keynote speech at the launch, declared that the searchlight on the sub-sector being advocated for was imperative, so as to ensure that it takes a notch higher than what it is presently.
The Senator affirmed that Nigerians would have confidence and trust in the pension administration once they were sure that they had their pensions and social security system in place.
Senator Salis stressed: “When you have things like pensions and social security systems, these are things that give the citizens confidence and trust in the administration.
“A number of reforms are going on in the country now. As you are fully aware, we have tax reform bills that are before the National Assembly.
“We have a number of reforms this administration has initiated. Some of them come with immediate pains. Some of them have long term benefits.
“But as we are doing so, we must take a look at our pension administration and management. I believe a book like this will also contribute to our search for a more sustainable, more accountable and a more transparent administration of pensions in the country”.
The lawmaker, who is the Chairman, Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security, reiterated that all relevant and critical stakeholders in the Nigerian pension administration and management sector needed to get copies of the book in order to “begin to see what we need to do and ensure that pension administration in the country takes a notch higher than it is now”.
He called for total reform of pension administration and management in Nigeria, so as to give people confidence and trust in the system.
Senator Salis bemoaned the trend among Nigerian youths resorting to cybercrimes, saying that he is sometimes depressed knowing what the youth are doing – using social media to commit crimes.
He stated: “I chair the Senate Committee on ICT and Cyber Security. I am sometimes depressed that there have been schools established for cybercrimes in posh areas”.
Still, Senator Salis urged Nigerians not to leave the task of nation building for politicians alone, saying: “all of us have a sphere of influence and we must not forget to do what we can do in our own sphere of influence.”
In his review, Prof. Kabiru Dandago, noted that being the latest pension administration and pension fund management textbook in Nigeria, the book focused more on practical than theoretical aspects of pension in 14 chapters.
Dandago who is a Professor of Taxation in Bayero University, Kano, disclosed that the dearth of a combination of theoretical and practical textbooks in the field of Pension Administration and Pension Funds Management is the main problem for promoting pension studies at the academic and professional levels.
The erudite academia stated: “This book is a “should read” to all students of Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, Insurance and Actuarial Science, and Economics offering some course units with the coverage of Pension Administration or Pension Funds Management in the Nigerian universities, polytechnics, ICAN, ANAN or any other relevant professional body.
“The contents of the book should serve as a guide towards the overhauling of the syllabi of the tertiary educational institutions offering programmes in relevant fields (at the level of ND, HND, B. Sc., MSc or professional programs) and those of the accountancy and other relevant professional bodies so that Pension Administration and Pension Funds Management could be a subject for training and examination for the award of relevant degrees or certificates.
Also Read:
- I now know why Gov. Uba has been praising Tinubu — El-Rufai
- Surviving abroad marriage: My observations, by Tunde Asaju
- Why I dumped PDP – Nwoko; We won’t miss him — Commissioner
- Anambra: Three siblings killed, bodies dumped in deep freezer
- Telecom Tariff Hike: NLC suspends planned nationwide protest
“The book is greatly recommended to policy makers and practitioners in the areas of Pension Administration and Pension Funds Management: Pension Funds regulators, Pension Funds Administrators (PFA), Pension Funds Custodians (PFC), Pension Desk Officers, as well as researchers and other individuals and organizations that are interested in pension administration and management”.
The don, also a former Commissioner of Finance in Kano State, called on the Civil Society Organizations and the organized labour (NLC and TUC), as well as academic and non-academic staff unions of universities, polytechnics, colleges of education (ASUU, ASUP, SANNU, NASU, etc) to accept the book as a good guide to their preparation for retirement and understanding how their entitlements should be correctly determined, computed and paid to them in good time.
He hailed the author, Dr Imran who he disclosed has been his “proud mentee”, co-author in academic journal publication and a friend for a long period of time.
“He is very hard-working, honest, creative, initiative, patriotic, reliable and loyal to constituted authorities. These are attributes that he brought to bear in writing this very authoritative and professionally-inclined book” Prof. Dandago revealed.
He expressed hope that the book would be well received by the target groups and for it to serve as the long awaited agent of positive and progressive change in the areas of Pension Administration and Pension Fund Management.
Speaking on what spurred him to write the book,
Dr Imran disclosed that he was motivated to write the book as a result of the fact that reading materials on pension administration and management are very “scanty” in the context of Nigeria, as well as several other climes, adding “this book is purposely written in order to address this chasm”.
He said: “The book is specifically concerned with historical backgrounds on pension administration and management including actuarial valuations, pension benefits calculations and some highlights of pension administration in some other countries” said Dr Saheed.
“The book is distinctively prepared to boost the knowledge of individuals who want to gain certification in Pensions Administration, Management and Actuarial Science at the Diploma, degree or post-graduate levels as it would be substantially essential to their understanding of necessary calculations in pensions and actuarial valuations.
“The book is distinctive in the sense that each topic is preceded with learning objectives followed by necessary illustrations and other useful learning resources. It is also deliberately arranged in such a way that it will be easy to read and understand, while necessary graphics are introduced to make it appealing, practical and reader-friendly to people of all classes. It equally contains some illustrations and examples so as not to make it needlessly wordy.
“The book will undoubtedly serve as a solid foundation for both students and non-pension professionals who would want to deepen their knowledge, skills and competence in pension administration and management”.
Similarly, he revealed that the book was further adaptation of the Contributory Pension Scheme to suit local expectations, such as Treasury Funded Gratuity payment to retired workers, other than the Pension Contributions (RSA balances at retirement) with a view to further improving the operations and management of Pensions in Nigeria as well as some other countries.
He indicated that the book is poised to promoting the inclusiveness of workers in the informal sector of the economy in the micro-pension plan (MPP) as they constitute over 60 per cent of the working population in Nigeria and some other developing economies.
Dr Imran confirmed that the book will be available at various interested book stores, Book Fairs, as well as online (amazon, kindle) among others.
The book launch was graced by Dr Babatunde Alayande, of Micro Pensions department, National Pension Commission and the second reviewer, top government officials, business executives from private sector, professionals and students of finance, taxation, pension administration and management.
It also featured a drama presentation, by corps members, which focused on the importance of pension saving scheme – as the only means to safeguard effects of untoward inevitable experience, as well as to achieve a financial hazard free post-retirement era.
Follow The Eagle Online Channel on WhatsApp
