Pension Insight: Customer service week — Pencom unveils revised service charter, consumer protection framework

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has officially launched its revised service charter and consumer protection framework to enhance the quality of service to contributors and retirees under the contributory pension scheme (CPS). The launch, held at an event in Abuja during the 2024 customer service week celebrations, signifying a renewed commitment towards enhancing transparency, efficiency, and excellent service delivery in Nigeria’s pension industry.

The service charter and consumer protection framework are set to transform how services are delivered to pension contributors and retirees, reinforcing trust in the CPS, and ensuring long-term sustainability.

Welcoming an audience that included licensed pension fund operators (LPFOs), Nigeria Union of Pensioners Contributory Pension Scheme (NUPCPS), and key stakeholders in the pension industry in Nigeria, the acting director-general of PenCom, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, lauded the service charter and consumer protection framework as an important milestone for the Nigerian pension industry.

THE NEED FOR ENHANCED STANDARDS

The revised service charter and consumer protection framework come at a crucial time when the CPS is experiencing rapid growth. As at August 2024, the total pension assets under the CPS had grown to over ₦21.14 trillion, covering more than 10.46 million RSA holders.

However, with this growth, comes the need to continuously improve service delivery. The Acting PenCom DG told participants at the launch that the revised service charter was part of a broader strategy to render efficient and effective service to pension customers.

“The Service Charter we are presenting today is designed to define clear service delivery expectations, both for us at PenCom and for the PFAs and other operators we oversee,” Ms. Oloworaran said. “It sets the benchmarks that will govern our interactions and ensure that the trust placed in us by the Nigerian public is maintained and continually enhanced.”

KEY FEATURES OF THE REVISED CHARTER

The newly unveiled revised service charter is one of the provisions of the service compact with all Nigerians (SERVICOM) and ease of doing business initiative of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC). The Charter represents and expresses PenCom’s commitment towards its stakeholders in respect of the standard of services, information dissemination, availability of choice and consultation, non-discrimination and accessibility of service, grievance redress mechanism and expectations of the commission from its stakeholders.

The charter affirms PenCom’s resolve in ensuring effective and prompt service delivery and seeks to remove bureaucratic constraints to enhance the ease of doing business. It further highlights the various services expected to be provided by PenCom as well as providing feedback on the services rendered. The charter also explains the redress procedures to be followed in the event of service failures, and the modalities for obtaining information from PenCom.

The acting director-general emphasised the ongoing responsibility of all stakeholders in upholding the standards set by the revised service charter.

“As we roll out these initiatives, I want to emphasise that excellent service delivery is not just a regulatory requirement—it is a key driver of confidence in the pension system,” Ms. Oloworaran said. “The security of retirement savings depends heavily on the trust and confidence that contributors and retirees have in the institutions managing their pensions.”

PenCom views this initiative as a collaborative effort. The charter is not only a set of guidelines but a “living document” designed to evolve in response to the needs of contributors and the operational realities of PFAs. The acting PenCom DG called on all stakeholders to see it as a dynamic tool that will guide continuous improvements. She encouraged all stakeholders of the CPS to consider the service charter and framework as tools that will guide the industry’s journey toward continuous improvement in excellent service delivery.

The public presentation of the service charter and framework has been met with optimism from industry experts and stakeholders. Participants, in their goodwill messages, extolled the revised service charter and consumer protection framework as a positive step towards a more transparent, reliable, and customer-friendly pension industry.

Based on information by the National Pension Commission (PenCom).