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PenCom’s Fund Increase By 2.23% In May

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1 year ago

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The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has disclosed that the value of pension funds in Nigeria increased by 2.23 per cent month-on-month to cross the N20tn mark to N20.23tn in May 2024.

 

PenCom in its unaudited report on the pension funds industry portfolio for the period ended May 31, 2024, disclosed that the Pension Funds Administrators’ (PFAs’) investment in FG securities remained high and increased within the period under review as it cornered 63.22 per cent of the entire funds.

 

According to the report, Investment in government securities stood at N12.79tn from N12.40tn in April.

 

Also, PFAs dropped about 10.83 per cent of the funds in corporate debt securities, with corporate bonds getting the largest share.

 

It disclosed that experts have attributed the PFAs’ interest in government securities and money market instruments to the hawkish stance of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which has seen it raise benchmark interest rates in a bid to reduce market liquidity.

 

The attractive rates on offer have seen investors, including pension funds, allocate more capital towards fixed-income securities for higher returns for their funds and contributors.

 

Also in the high-interest environment of the money market, pension fund investment dipped marginally to N1.93tn from N1.95tn in the previous month.

 

In April, mutual funds dipped by 19.93 per cent month-on-month to N85.19bn from N106.39bn in March.

 

In May, however, investment in mutual funds recorded an upswing to N95.28bn, and at the end of the month, the pension funds recorded an increase of N440.40bn monthly. This is the second-highest monthly increase this year, next to N1.18tn in January.

 

In the first five months of the year, the pension funds have appreciated by N1.87tn and on a year-on-year basis, pension funds had increased by N4.12tn.

 

Between May 2023 and May this year, the membership of the Retired Savings Account has also increased by 356,795 or 3.57 per cent to 10,351,624.

 

Meanwhile, the National Insurance Commission has ordered African Alliance Insurance Plc to resolve and ensure the settlement of outstanding claims from its customers.

 

This followed what the commission described as increased complaints by annuitants and insurance claimants against African Alliance Insurance Plc in respect of the company’s delay and/or inability to fulfil its obligations.

 

NAICOM said it has summoned the board of African Alliance Insurance to its headquarters in Abuja recently and ordered the company to settle outstanding payments due to annuitants and claimants.

 

They were also asked to submit a turnaround plan for addressing the challenges currently faced by the company, which necessitated putting the company under the commission’s regulatory order.

 

Corlins Walter

 

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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21 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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21 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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21 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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