Young, digitally savvy workers boost pension enrolment in Q3

Nigeria’s pension landscape is being reshaped by a new generation of young, digitally savvy workers who are enrolling earlier and in greater numbers.

In Q3 2025 alone, over 129,000 new Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) were registered, with people under 40 driving nearly three-quarters of the growth.

This shift signals rising financial awareness among young Nigerians and strengthens the long-term sustainability of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), according to analysts in the pension industry.

For instance, Victor 26 years old had never really thought about retirement. Between juggling getting a job, rent, and plans to start life like other young men, retirement plan would seem like a lifetime away.

But when his HR officer walked him through opening an RSA for pension savings, it emerged a lifetime change that has just begun.

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Victor incidentally is one of the more than 129,000 Nigerians who registered new RSAs in Q3 2025, courtesy of his new employment as service engineer in a Telecommunication Company based in Lagos.

Across the country, young Nigerians are taking charge of their financial futures. People under 40 accounted for 96,364 of new registrations, nearly three out of every four sign-ups, that is 74.6 percent.

“It’s a sign that pension awareness is no longer something people stumble into late in their careers.”

Instead, it is becoming part of early working life, strengthening the long-term health of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), analysts at Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp) said.

For older age groups, the picture looks different. Workers aged 40 to 49 recorded 24, 542 registrations, that is19 percent, while enrolment dropped sharply above age 49.

Pension officials say this highlights a truth that more people will key as they start their career.

It also explains why continuous efforts to create awareness particularly in the private sectors maters a lot. Therefor, focus is increasingly on younger, economically active workers, and those with time on their side.

From a gender perspective, men accounted for 77,109 registrations that is 59.70 percent, while women contributed 52,045, equal to 40.30 percent, indicating a narrowing gender gap.

Female participation increased by 6.5 percent year-on-year, reflecting the impact of targeted awareness campaigns, improved access to pension services, and rising female participation in the formal workforce.

“Overall, these demographic trends point to healthy progress in CPS adoption, led by strong youth engagement and improving gender inclusion, PenOp analysts said.

They said to sustain and deepen this growth, continued digital outreach, workplace partnerships, and targeted engagement with young workers and women will be essential.

Modestus Anaesoronye is a leading Nigerian financial journalist with over two decades of experience reporting on the insurance and pension sectors across Nigeria and West Africa. He has held key editorial positions at major national media outlets, including The Comet, The Nation, and Financial Standard, and currently serves as a Senior Financial Analyst at BusinessDay Media Ltd.

A widely travelled reporter, he has covered industry developments in more than 14 countries across Africa and Asia.

Anaesoronye is a multiple award-winning journalist, honoured several times as Insurance Journalist of the Year and Pension Journalist of the Year by recognised industry bodies, including PensionScope and the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), among others.

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