More states keying in to pension scheme good for Nigeria — Odutola

Mr. Wale Odutola is the Managing Director of ARM Pensions Limited. In this interview, he talked on the need for states to buy into the contributory pension scheme and other issues. Excerpt.

Odutola ARM

Can you tell us about ARM  Pension’s annual customer forum, what do you do at the forum?

We do it every year. The objective is to engage our customers, to share with them our plans, both long and short term plans and what we will be doing as a firm.  But more importantly, for us to hear from them as well, for them to tell us their pains, aspirations, what we could be doing differently or do better.  We try to take their advice and improve on their area of concern the following year. It is also an opportunity for our clients to engage with each other, network, because you never know what will come out of those interactions. It is also an opportunity for us to look for subject matter experts in various industries to come and share their experiences with our clients and hopefully in that process enrich our clients and improve their lives.

ARM also has some initiatives in the education sector; can you tell us about the initiatives?

As a business we realise that the future is the youth. We need to continue to invest in them to ensure that when our generation moves out, we have the right talent to come in. So as a firm we continue to look for opportunities to mentor people in the universities and even secondary schools. We have a programme we call the young talent programme where we bring students over, – students in secondary schools and universities. We mentor them, we assign task to them that we also assign to our qualified staff and challenge them. We hope that in that process we are able to deposit something in them that will make a difference in them when they begin formal employment.

There are people out there who may think ARM just get people to keep their pension with them and may not have the infrastructure to support their huge clientele.  Is it true?

I want to speak directly to people like that and address their concerns. As a business I come down to our culture and our belief system. What sets us apart from the rest is that as a group we have done investment management for 20 years. As a Pension Fund Administrator (PFA), we have been here since the inception. It is not a coincidence that we are one of the most successful PFA and assets managers in the country. It comes down to the dedication and quality of people that we have and the quality of investments that we continue to make in the quality of people that we have. The quality of our platform infrastructure that we use to service our clients is second to none. We also continue to invest in the platform to improve it to ensure that it continues to deliver the experience that our clients want. If there is one thing that can be said about ARM is that we deliver on the promises that we make. Trust is an integral part of this company; it is woven into the fabric of this company. Clients realise that when we say we are going to deliver something to them we will deliver as promised. Our clients also realise that we will look after them weather they are contributing or when they go into retirement. For us that is critical in terms of how we see the world.  The clients are the reason why we are here and we never forget that. We always remind ourselves of that. The focus of the board management and staff is really on the clients. I think that as well as our belief system is what sets us apart.

 There is this allegation that PFAs are just accumulating monies and warehouse them whereas Nigeria has a huge infrastructure gap. How can we unlock these funds, what specific products can we develop for the purpose of investing in infrastructure safely?

I think the industry recognises that as well and in the last few months the regulators have been engaging the operators to come up with bankable ways of making investments in infrastructure.  As operators, we also realise that there is this huge infrastructure gap, we sit on huge investments and we realise that in order for a country like Nigeria to move forward, there has to be huge investments made in infrastructure. As investment managers in the pension industry, we also realise that there are very few assets that we can invest in currently. There is no variety in terms of asset classes or assets that we can invest in. So, any opportunity to diversify is one that we will take and any opportunity to lengthen duration in our investments is one that we all would like to take advantage of.  But what is important is that the right structure and platforms are put in place to ensure the safety of investments that we ultimately will make in infrastructure. I believe that is what National Pension Commission (PENCOM) is doing as well. This is to ensure that when we do start making active investment in infrastructure, the products and the structures that we are investing in are bankable structures that will guaranty the safety of investments that the PFA is looking to make. So, clearly, I think the regulators has initiated that process  and operators like us will continue to work with them to ensure that the initiative comes to life and we are able to make investments in infrastructure, support the economy and also protect the funds that have been put in our care.

So you admit that there is a need for PFAs to support the Nigerian economy?

Yes. Nobody can deny that. Without doubt, if the economy continues to grow and if we are able to even kick-start a larger growth within the economy, everybody stands to benefit from it. Economic growth will help businesses to grow and when that happens they will hire people who will register with PFAs and the funds within the pension industry will continue to grow as well. For us, it is a win- win for everybody.

How easy or tough is it for pensioners to assess their pension when they retire, what are the modalities they are to follow?

Based on the current regulation, it is at the point of retirement which could start anytime from 50 years depending on your place of work. However, there are provisions within the current regulations to allow for people who are out of work to be able to access their pension once they are able to show that they are out of employment for four months. It used to be six month but the new regulation has put it at four. This is to ensure that the money is useful, when one is out of employment. You cannot be out of employment and there is pool of money sitting with your PFAs, you are not able to access it. You should be able to do so. Like I said, the law and the regulations that PENCOM has laid down are quite clear in terms of how you can access your pension when you retire or if you are temporarily out of job. All of that is laid out very clearly in the law. At retirement, you have an opportunity to either buy another product with your retirement if you like. That is what we call programme withdrawal. We sit down with you and determine how much on a monthly basis you will get from the programme withdrawal and how much you can get from a lump sum payment, which may be used, if you want to set up a small business or you have a capital project like a house you want to complete or whatever. All of that is laid out very clearly in the law. We have qualified relationship managers that typically would sit down with the client and advise them. What we also try to do is when clients are a few years to retirement we begin to engage them as regarding retirement; we begin to have those conversations, sensitise them in terms of what they can do and can’t do, what opportunities exist so that in their minds they are prepared for it and they are also able to plan ahead.

Is it possible for a next of kin to have access to the fund in the event that a contributor passes on?

Yes. In the event of death God forbid, the process in the industry ensures that we don’t pay the wrong person. So there are certain checks and balances that have been put in place to ensure that there is proper verification.

What can an employee  do if his employer is not remitting his pension. What advice do you have for such employee?

Well, PENCOM has laid down the specific rules as regard the funding of employee’s pensions and there are specific rules they have also laid down as to how to address those problems. In our part, what we try to do is to encourage our clients to engage their employers regarding the lack of funding of their pension-most employers are reasonable. The first thing to do is to engage your employer and encourage them to make those contributions. We have found out that it works over a long period. Over and beyond that PENCOM has laid down the specific process to getting that done.

There are states in the country that have not subscribed to the contributory pension scheme, how do get them to participate?

For states that have not yet started the contributory pension scheme, we continue to dialogue with those states, we continue to encourage them. PENCOM has continued to do so as well. We try to make them to realise that the more people contribute to the pension scheme the better for Nigeria. It is our hope and desire to see that coverage continues to improve and it will go beyond federal government and states that are currently contributing to the pension scheme. We hope to take it to the 36 states of the federation.

AXAmansard to provide cutting-edge solutions to Nigeria market

AXAmansard Insurance plc has promised to provide cutting-edge solutions to chosen market segments in Nigeria’s financial services industry following the upgrade of its brand from Mansard Insurance Plc.

The brand upgrade is coming with access to an improved portfolio of products and services for all its customers across all service segments i.e. protection, health, pensions as well as savings & investments.

The company also launched its newly redesigned and upgraded website, www.axamansard.com

During the upgrade ceremony at the company’s head office in Lagos, Denis Duverne, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of AXA Group said, “This brand upgrade further demonstrates AXA’s commitment to the largest African economy in particular and to Africa in general as this is consistent with our ambition. Leveraging on AXA’s global network of 59 countries on 5 continents, AXA Mansard now offers its customers services and products based on the global expertise of AXA complemented by Mansard’s significant and proven local competence. This combination is expected to provide cutting-edge solutions to our chosen market segments in Nigeria’s financial services industry.”

He said, “Seven months ago in December 2014, we joined the AXA Group as a full member thereby bringing our customers into the world of AXA.  AXA is the No. 1 Insurance brand in the world and a global leader in insurance and asset management. Mansard Insurance over the years with the kind patronage and partnership of our customers and other stakeholders has grown rapidly, helping to shape Nigeria’s financial services industry largely within the insurance sector.

Chief Client Officer of AXA Mansard, Mr. Tosin Runsewe said, “The synergy between these great entities, AXA and Mansard, will offer our company infinite access to global resources, capacity development and broader product offering, both commercial and personal lines. These factors will transcend into delivery of better service and improved products tailored to suit the needs of all our customers. AXA Mansard is thus positioned to offer the best in property, life & health protection, pension management as well as savings and investments.”