PenCom urges young Nigerians to start saving early

LAGOS, Nigeria — The Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, has urged young Nigerians to start saving for retirement early, warning that excessive spending on today’s lifestyle could leave them financially vulnerable in old age.

She made the call on Monday, October 26, 2026, while declaring open National Pension Week 2026.

Oloworaran said there is nothing wrong with enjoying the rewards of hard work, and that she enjoys a comfortable lifestyle herself. But she said young people need deliberate plans for the future, focusing on what they keep, build and protect rather than only what comes into their accounts.

To show the value of starting early, she compared two hypothetical savers. Emeka, who contributes ₦10,000 from age 40 to 60, could retire with about ₦13 million. Tolu, who starts contributing at 20, could accumulate ₦113 million by retirement. The illustration assumes a conservative annual return of 10%. She said aggressive pension funds for younger contributors recorded returns above 20% during the period she reviewed.

Oloworaran acknowledged the pressures young people face, including unemployment, family responsibilities, education costs and the rising cost of living. She argued that time is the biggest advantage they have, because it allows investments more years to grow.

She addressed pension fund operators, custodians and other industry partners, saying younger Nigerians expect faster services, greater transparency and convenient digital access. She said opening a pension account should not take a day when other services can be done in minutes.

She outlined four PenCom priorities: making pensions easier to understand, improving access through digital channels, enforcing high standards of governance and investment management among pension operators, and listening to young contributors. She invited participants to share their expectations of the pension system through the event’s chat platform.

The call comes as pension assets continue to grow. According to PenCom’s unaudited figures, total pension assets rose from ₦28.04 trillion in January 2026 to a record ₦31.8 trillion at August 31, 2026, a year-to-date increase of 13.41%. Assets under management rose ₦289.4 billion, or 0.92%, from July.