91.4 Percent Of Personal Pension Accounts Remain Unfunded

• Only 18,811 of 219,316 Personal Pension Plan accounts had received contributions by the end of Q1 2026.

• Personal Pension Plan contributions reached N147.16 million in the first quarter, taking cumulative contributions to N1.66 billion.

• AccessARM accounted for 33.64 percent of new PPP registrations in Q1 and 52.4 percent of total registered accounts.

August 28, () — About 91.4 percent of retirement savings accounts registered under Nigeria’s Personal Pension Plan remained unfunded at the end of the first quarter of 2026, highlighting the wide gap between registration and actual participation in the scheme.

According to data from the National Pension Commission’s first-quarter 2026 pension industry report, 219,316 Personal Pension Plan RSAs had been registered as of March 2026.

However, only 18,811 accounts, representing 8.58 percent of the total, had received contributions.

This left 200,505 registered accounts without any funding.

The figures indicate that while the Personal Pension Plan continues to attract registrations, a large majority of contributors are yet to make payments into their retirement savings accounts.

Contributions Remain Low

PPP contributions amounted to ₦147.16 million during the first quarter, bringing total contributions since the scheme’s inception to ₦1.66 billion.

The disparity between the number of registered accounts and funded accounts raises questions about the extent to which registration is translating into active retirement savings.

The Personal Pension Plan is designed to provide retirement savings access to individuals who are not covered by the mandatory pension arrangement, including self-employed workers and others outside formal employment.

PenCom’s data also showed that contributors continued to access part of their pension savings through contingent withdrawals.

A total of ₦11.12 million was withdrawn in the first quarter by 15 Personal Pension Contributors through four Pension Fund Administrators.

Cumulative contingent withdrawals stood at ₦124.30 million, involving 346 contributors.

AccessARM recorded the largest share of new PPP RSA registrations during the quarter, accounting for 33.64 percent of new registrations.

Its cumulative market share stood at 52.4 percent of all registered PPP RSAs.

The concentration suggests that while the PPP market is expanding, participation remains uneven across PFAs.

Pension Reforms Could Broaden Contributions

The latest figures come as PenCom reviews Nigeria’s pension framework and considers measures to strengthen contributions and increase the role of pension assets in the economy.

In July, the commission disclosed plans to increase statutory pension contribution rates as part of its ongoing review of the Pension Reform Act 2014.

Under the current framework, employers are required to contribute a minimum of 10 percent of an employee’s monthly emoluments, while employees contribute 8 percent, bringing the mandatory contribution rate to 18 percent.

PenCom has indicated that the contribution rate could be increased under the proposed reforms.

However, the large number of unfunded PPP accounts points to a different challenge: getting registered contributors to make actual and consistent payments.

For the Personal Pension Plan to significantly expand retirement coverage, the focus may therefore need to shift beyond registration numbers towards active contributions.

The first-quarter data shows that Nigeria has attracted hundreds of thousands of people to the scheme, but only a small fraction are currently building retirement savings through it.