Cynthia Ezekwe
CrusaderSterling Pensions Limited, one of Nigeria’s licensed Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), has encouraged workers in the informal sector to take advantage of the micro pension plan in order to secure their financial future.
The micro pension scheme was designed specifically for self-employed individuals, including artisans and others who are not part of the formal workforce, to enable them to save for their retirement in a safe and convenient manner.
Rotimi Adebiyi, the managing director of CrusaderSterling Pensions Limited made the call when he led the staff of the company on a pension awareness walk in Lagos to introduce the micro pension plan to entrepreneurs.
According to the company, the scheme offers a number of benefits that make it an attractive option for artisans and other self-employed workers, and also enable its contributors to enjoy benefits of having Retirement Savings Accounts.
Speaking on the scheme, Adebiyi said, “We have had a superior performance in RSA Fund II since its inception. We are one of the top players in the industry, and this campaign is to educate our potential clients about the Micro Pension Plan.”
According to the CrusaderSterling MD, while there are approximately 40 million workers in Nigeria, only around 11 million of them have retirement savings accounts under the country’s contributory pension scheme. This means that there is a significant portion of the workforce that is not yet covered by the scheme. To address this, he explained that CrusaderSterling is creating awareness about the benefits of having a pension and opening accounts with workers in the informal sector.
Speaking on the benefits of opening a micro pension plan with CrusaderSterling Pensions,Toyin Oduola, the head of SME & Informal Sector, said, “We have had a superior return on the SME & Informal Sector investment for our contributors. This is an opportunity to make a choice with us.”
