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PenCom & NPAN Team Up to Enhance Media Pension Compliance

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The National Pension Commission (PenCom) says it will forge a strategic partnership with the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN) to ensure compliance of pension remittance by managers of media organisations in Nigeria.

Director General of the National Pension Commission, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, made the disclosure in Abuja when she led her management team on a courtesy visit to the President of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), Malam Kabiru Yusuf, on Monday.

She said the purpose of the visit was to seek support for the compliance within the media sector to conform to the Pension Reform Act of 2014, which mandates that all employers must remit pension contributions for their employers on a monthly basis within seven days.

Accordingly, the DG highlighted that the mandate of PenCom is to enforce and ensure full compliance with the Act and as part of the drive for compliance, the commission has been having several meetings with employers across the country, while noting that many media houses are not remitting pension for their staff as employers currently owe over N700 million in pension remittance.

“A couple of weeks ago, we met with the Press Council as well to help us in this drive to ensure compliance with the Pension Reform Act.

What we do in PenCom is we try to engage employers and get all employers to be compliant with the Act by ensuring that everyone is contributing towards the financial security of their staff.

So, we are the watchdogs to enforce that. Unfortunately, it’s been a tall task particularly within the media sector.

“The findings are very troubling because based on the investigations we’ve done, the media houses are owing pension contributions to the tune of N720million.

That’s a whole lot. “It seems to me like a number of them don’t even bother to pay at all. And it’s striking because we hold the media in high esteem in society.

And like I said, the media helps to shape national discourse and we hope and assume that at least they will be leading in the case of contributing pensions for their workers,” she added.

She, however, commended Media Trust Group for being the sole media outfit that has been compliant with remitting staff pension into their Retirement Savings Account (RSA).

“I must first of all commend the Media Trust Group because they have essentially been leading by example in this area. You’ve been compliant since 2015.

She reiterated that the purpose of the visit was not focused on being punitive but to seek NPAN’s collaboration towards financial security of workers

In his response, the President of NPAN who also doubles as the Chairman Board of Directors of Media Trust Group, Malam Kabiru Yusuf, noted that newspaper houses are struggling to survive as many cannot pay salaries, let alone remit pension.

“The industry is in deep trouble. Maybe that is partly why this compliance is not happening. I do know for a fact that many newspapers cannot even pay their obligation to their staff,” he noted.T

o address the situation, He said “We have a super group called the Nigerian Press Organisation which is made up of the NPAN, the Nigerian Guild of Editors and the Nigerian Union of Journalists.

We work together sometimes. So, it is important to arrange a meeting with all these associations and chart a way forward,” he explained.

He proposed that the meeting be slated in August or September to interface with PenCom to find a lasting solution to pension remittance in the media industry.

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JUST IN: President Tinubu set to return to Nigeria after Saint Lucia, Brazil trip

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President Bola Tinubu is expected to return to Nigeria on Saturday (today) two weeks after his two-nation visit to Saint Lucia and Brazil.

The President’s spokesman, Bayo Onanuga announced this in a post on his official X handle.

Recall that Tinubu departed Abuja for Saint Lucia and Brazil on Saturday, June 28, 2025.

The President paid a state visit to Saint Lucia as part of efforts to deepen Nigeria’s engagement with Caribbean nations and strengthen South-South cooperation.

Tinubu on July 4th departed Saint Lucia for Brazil where he attend the 2025 BRICS Summit, held July 6-7, 2025.

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CBN And Bank of Industry Partner With CEAN To Stabilise Nigeria’s Creative Sector Post-COVID

For more than a decade, CEAN has played a vital role in connecting Nigeria’s informal creative workforce to structured policy, funding, and formal economic opportunities.

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September 12, 2022, Lagos, Nigeria

In a bold and strategic move to rescue Nigeria’s creative industries from the lingering economic shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bank of Industry (BOI) partnered with the Creative Entrepreneurs Association of Nigeria (CEAN) to design and implement a nationwide intervention targeting vulnerable creative businesses.

The collaboration, launched in mid-2022, marks a milestone in the recognition of Nigeria’s creative economy as a critical pillar of national development—and affirms CEAN’s position as a trusted stakeholder in industry policy and infrastructure development.

Responding to a Sector in Crisis

The partnership was galvanized by CEAN’s early post-pandemic white paper, “Creating Through Crisis: The Future of Nigerian Creativity Post-COVID.

It presented compelling data and policy recommendations that influenced federal strategy.

While other sectors received initial support under the government’s economic recovery plans, it was CEAN’s persistent advocacy and detailed sector mapping that brought national attention to the creative industries’ urgent needs.

CEAN’s nationwide rollout had seen the training of over 2,000 creative entrepreneurs, advisory support to more than 500 micro-businesses, and the establishment of regional Creative Recovery Hubs in Lagos, Abuja, and Enugu.

“From day one of the pandemic, we understood that Nigeria’s cultural workforce—millions strong—was at risk of collapse,” said Adebowale Ewedemi, CEAN founding executive and veteran media entrepreneur.

“We didn’t just lobby for change; we brought the tools, the structure, and the roadmap,” said Ewedemi.

From Blueprint to Implementation

The result was a landmark intervention program backed by BOI and regulated by CBN, with CEAN serving as the official implementation partner.

The program delivers targeted support to struggling sub-sectors including independent film, performance art, fashion, radio, music, design, and digital content production.

Highlights of the program include:

• Access to low-interest working capital for creative entrepreneurs

• Training grants and accelerator programs for skill development

• Support for studio and performance infrastructure

• Technical assistance for digital transformation and business retooling.

CEAN’s nationwide rollout had seen the training of over 2,000 creative entrepreneurs, advisory support to more than 500 micro-businesses, and the establishment of regional Creative Recovery Hubs in Lagos, Abuja, and Enugu.

Sustained Leadership in Nigeria’s Creative Economy

This intervention is only the latest in CEAN’s long record of national impact. During the peak of the COVID-19 lockdowns, the association served as a frontline support system—offering emergency relief, transitioning training programs online, and shaping portions of the Federal Government’s Survival Fund.

For more than a decade, CEAN has played a vital role in connecting Nigeria’s informal creative workforce to structured policy, funding, and formal economic opportunities.

Through this work, the association—under Ewedemi’s leadership—has consistently introduced original models, innovative frameworks, and institutional partnerships that define sustainable creative sector governance in Africa.

Architects of a New Creative Economy

This partnership with CBN and BOI reflects a broader understanding that Nigeria’s future is tied to the creative ingenuity of its people—and that long-term development requires strategic institutions with deep insight, trust, and capacity.

“We’re proud to move beyond advocacy into implementation. This is not a moment—it’s a movement. We are helping to reshape the creative industry into a nationally recognized economic force, ”said Ewedemi.

As the creative sector continues to recover and rebuild, CEAN remains committed to ensuring that no artist, content creator, or cultural innovator is left behind.

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President Tinubu congratulates Governor Okpebholo on Supreme Court Victory

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Nigeria’s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has congratulated Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State on the affirmation of his election by the Supreme Court.

The Edo State governorship election took place in September 2024, and Governor Okpebholo was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Supreme Court, as the final arbiter, upheld the election of the governor today.

According to the press statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), President Tinubu encourages Governor Okpebholo to be magnanimous in victory and rally the citizens of Edo across divides towards a singular vision of advancing the state’s development.

The President advises that now that the governor has cleared the legal hurdles, it is time for him to accelerate the delivery of exceptional services and good governance to the people of Edo State, which he has already begun to do.

President Tinubu also congratulates the leadership and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State and calls for cohesion and dedication in effectively discharging the mandate given by the people.

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