FG Reviews Police Pension Package to Narrow Income Gap, Douse Concerns
• NPF pension urges serving officers to access 25% RSA for mortgage equity contribution
James Emejo in Abuja
Managing Director/Chief Executive, NPF Pensions Limited, Mr. Muhammed Dutse, yesterday revealed that the federal government was working on a fresh intervention aimed at narrowing the gap in retirement income for police officers under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
Speaking at the Pension Fund Administration (PFA)’s customer service week in Abuja, Dutse stated that the initiative was being driven at the presidential level, although details of the package were still being worked out.
He said the proposed intervention was particularly important because pensioners were dissatisfied with their retirement benefits, despite recent government measures that had improved the balances of Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs).
PFA urged serving police officers to take advantage of the pension industry’s mortgage provision allowing eligible contributors to access up to 25 per cent of their RSA balance as equity contribution towards purchasing a home.
Addressing journalists, Dutse said the company had been engaging the government on measures to improve the standard of living and “pay cheque” of retired police officers, adding that the latest effort was expected to further address concerns over what retirees ultimately take home.
He said, “I would not want to disclose the entirety of the arrangement, because it is a presidential committee that is working on it.”
He explained that the present administration had already taken significant steps to address outstanding pension obligations, including clearing a backlog of contributions that had accumulated for more than 24 months under the previous administration.
He said government had also undertaken pension adjustments and committed over N150 billion to address related concerns, while measures taken had substantially improved the Retirement Savings Account (RSA) balances of existing pension contributors.
Dutse said the next phase was essentially about closing the remaining gap between improved RSA balances and the income retirees received after leaving the police service.
NPF Pensions said it had also been developing interventions designed to prepare officers financially for life after active service.
Dutse said one of them was its retirement resettlement support programme, under which the pension manager provided temporary support to retiring police officers while awaiting the release of their retirement benefits through the relevant pension processes.
Dutse said thousands of police officers had benefited from the programme over the years.
The pension manager had also expanded its pre-retirement engagement with officers, using seminars to prepare them for life after the police.
Police officers are also exposed to income-generating opportunities, including agriculture, poultry, and other small businesses that could provide additional income after retirement, shifting the focus from retirement as the end of earnings to retirement planning as a broader financial transition.
PFA is equally overhauling the way police personnel interact with the scheme, with digital access and direct engagement becoming central to its customer-service strategy.
Dutse said nearly 100,000 customers had already been enrolled on the company’s online platform, with enrolment continuing to rise.
He said the company had made customer engagement a responsibility across the organisation, with senior executives and other employees directly reaching out to customers to understand and resolve their concerns.
The company has further linked the performance of its regional and customer service offices to efforts to get more police officers onto the digital platform.
The strategy is being reinforced by a physical presence across police formations.
Dutse said the company would not rely solely on bank deposits and conventional fixed-income instruments following the recent reduction in the central bank’s Monetary Policy Rate (MPR).
He pointed to alternative investments, infrastructure funds, and equities as part of the company’s strategy for maintaining competitive returns.
He said NPF Pensions had recorded strong investment performance over the past five years, with average annual returns in the range of 30 per cent to 40 per cent, although returns varied from year to year.
Meanwhile, the company’s Executive Director, Corporate Services, Priscilla Egede-Njowusi, encouraged serving police officers to take advantage of the pension industry’s mortgage provision allowing eligible contributors to access up to 25 per cent of their RSA balance as equity contribution towards purchasing a home.
Egede-Njowusi urged officers seeking to own houses to approach the pension manager and explore the provision rather than allowing the opportunity to remain unused.
The executive director said the initiative formed part of the company’s wider customer-centric approach, which sought to ensure that police officers could obtain services and benefits available under the pension framework without unnecessary barriers.
The initiatives seek to ensure that retirement savings translate into better financial outcomes before and after retirement—from housing ac-cess for serving officers to income support, fi-nancial preparedness, and improved service delivery for retirees.
