- Only 10.9% Workers Have Retirement Savings Account
The National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, yesterday, revealed that only 10.93 percent of Nigeria’s total working population have retirement savings account, RSA, as at end of second quarter of 2017, Q2’17. This implies that more than 89 percent of Nigeria’s workforce is without pension accounts. NBS, however, noted in its latest report that the assessment was based on available data, noting that data for Q2’17 will be updated as soon as it is available.
The report stated: “The retirement savings account, RSA, membership distribution data for Q2 2017 reflected that 7,589,936 workers are registered under the pension scheme compared to 7,493,590 registered workers in Q1 2017 out of a total working population of 69,470,901 recorded as at Q4 2016. This represents 10.93 percent of the total working population.
Subsistence Agriculture
“This is not surprising given the largely informal structure of the Nigerian labour force with about 50 percent of the current workforce engaged in subsistence agriculture and informal trading. Micro businesses for example account for over 90 percent of total Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Nigeria.”
NBS further noted that RSA membership is dominated by the private sector. It stated: “The Federal level had 1,898,199 registered RSA members under the national pension scheme as at Q2 2017 of which 1,384,579 or 72.94 percent were male and 513,620 or 27.06 percent were female compared to 1,889,143 registered RSA members of which 1,378,382 or 72.96 percent were male and 510,761 or 27.04 percent were female in Q1 2017. This may indicate that there are a lot more male employees in the Federal public service than female.
“At the State (including local government) level, 1,537,138 State public workers are registered under the national pension scheme with 863,605 or 56.18 percent male and 673,533 or 43.82 percent female as at Q2 2017 compared to 1,525,748 registered public workers of which 858,365 or 56.26% were male and 667,383 or 43.74 percent were female in Q1 2017. This may indicate that the Federal Public Service is larger than that of all 36 States combined and similar to the Federal service, men dominate with respect to number of employees.
“Private firms had 4,154,599 registered RSA members under the pension scheme as at Q1 2017 of which 3,143,703 or 75.67 percent were male and 1,010,896 or 24.33 percent were female compared to 4,078,699 registered RSA members of which 3,091,288 or 75.79 percent were male and 987,411 or 24.21 percent were female in Q1 2017.”
