The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has announced plans to redesign its Micro Pension Plan (MPP) in order to expand financial inclusion and capture millions of Nigerians working in the informal sector.
The disclosure was made at the 2025 Annual Conference of the Nigerian Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE) in Lagos, themed “Strengthening Insurance and Pension Frameworks for a Better Economy.”
The Micro Pension Plan, introduced in 2019 under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), was created to provide retirement savings opportunities for self-employed individuals and workers in organizations with fewer than three employees. However, six years after its launch, the scheme has attracted only about 200,000 contributors and a modest asset base of roughly ₦1 billion—figures the Commission admits are far below expectations.
Speaking at the event, PenCom Director-General, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, represented by the Commission’s Head of Corporate Communications, Mr. Ibrahim Buwai, acknowledged the shortcomings of the scheme and outlined steps being taken to reposition it.
“We are totally redesigning the product. In the coming weeks, we will launch a newly branded Micro Pension Plan, now to be called the Personal Pension Plan,” she said.
According to Oloworaran, the redesign will reflect the diversity of Nigeria’s vast informal sector, which constitutes the bulk of the nation’s estimated 70 to 80 million labour force. The new plan will be stratified to meet the needs of artisans, professionals, entertainers, sportsmen, and other categories of workers who currently lack structured retirement savings.
She added that onboarding has been a major challenge for the Micro Pension Plan, a gap the new initiative intends to close through technology.
“We will deploy technology-enabled onboarding to make registration as easy as using a POS terminal to withdraw or deposit money,” she explained.
With the rise of financial technology companies, PenCom is also considering adopting a “Super-Agent” model to drive participation, working closely with Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and leveraging FinTech channels to extend pension services to underserved communities.
Olusegun Omosehin, the Commissioner for Insurance, industry leaders, regulators, and stakeholders were among those present at the conference, which focused on the role of insurance and pensions in stabilising Nigeria’s economy.
PenCom expressed confidence that the redesigned plan will not only deepen financial inclusion but also strengthen the country’s social safety net by offering sustainable retirement savings options to millions outside the formal sector.
