Windows For Porting Of PFAs Underway As PenCom Deploys ECRS

Mrs. Aisha Dahir-Umar

Pensioners and other Retirement Savings Account, RSA, holders under the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS, who are not satisfied with the services of the Pension Fund Administrators, PFAs, will soon have the chance to move to another PFA as the National Pension Commission, PenCom, has taken  another step towards opening the window for RSA holders to change PFA.

This, the commission did by designing, developing and deploying an Enhanced  Contributor  Registration  System, ECRS.

The ECRS is an electronic platform for the submission of requests by Pension Fund  Administrators, PFAs, for the registration of contributors and issuance of Personal Identification Numbers, PIN. Making the ECRS public in a statement, the commission said following this feat, the Commission said it had “transited from the use at the existing Contributor Registration System, CRS, to the ECRS.

The ECRS provides a more  dynamic  and friendly user interface and fully  addresses the issues identified with the CRS.

The ECRS has also been integrated with the National Identity Management  Commission, NIMC, for authentication of the uniqueness of individuals  seeking to  register under the Contributory Pension Scheme.

“The deployment of the ECRS will greatly enhance the Integrity of contributors’ data and also provide a platform for the following; registration of Micro Pension Plan Participants and Cross Border  individuals  (ie. participants living abroad and foreigner living in Nigeria wishing to participate  in the CPS), electronic submission of employer code requests by Pension Fund Administrators, PFAs, or employers and the full automation of the process at issuing employer codes, and  updates and edits of information on the  National  Databank  maintained by the National Pension Commission by the PFAs.

“Accordingly, contributors are advised to visit their  PFA to provide their National identification Number and other information that may be required by the PFAs.  The deployment of the ECRS is a major step towards the introduction of the transfer  window  which will enable contributors change to the PFAs of their choice in  line with Section 13 of the  Pension  Reform  Act, PRA, 2014.”

The Commission assured stakeholders that it “will continue to come up with  positive innovations and policies that will not only address the yearnings of the  contributors but also enhance  the  regulation and supervision of the pension industry.”-Vanguard