PenCom Clears 20,529 Firms for FG Contracts Between 2012 and 2018
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) issued compliance certificates to a total of 20,529 companies operating in Nigeria to bid for federal government contracts. Compliance certificates were issued from December 2012 January 3, 2018.
The Pension Reform Act 2014, requires that employers who wish to solicit for federal government contract or who wish to do business with any federal government Ministry, Department or Agency (MDAs) must provide proof of compliance with PRA 2014 in respect of remittance of deducted pension funds to workers’ Retirement Savings Accounts.
A breakdown of the clearance certificates issued by the commission in the period under review, shows that the commission, issued the least number of compliance certificate in the year 2012 with a total number of 559 firms clinching the certificates.
The year 2016 witnessed the issuance of highest number of clearance certificates by the commission as a total number of 9, 077 firms were certified to bid for federal government contracts by the commission.
This was followed by 2017 during which it certified 3,850 firms and 2015 when it issued 3,619 certificates. In 2014, PenCom cleared 2,178 firms, in 2013, 1,163 firms were cleared for federal government contracts while this year, as at January 3, 2018, the commission has so far issued a total of 83 compliance certificates to 83 firms. The certified firms according to the commission are those who complied with the provisions of the PRA 2014 with regard to submission of evidence of remittance of contributions of their employees to their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) as well as evidence of valid group life insurance policy.
The commission had recently issued a general notice to remind employers who wish to bid or solicit for contract or business from any federal government MDAs, of the requirement to provide proof of compliance with the provisions of the Pension Reform Act, 2014 (PRA 2014). In the notice, the commission had insisted that only Pension Clearance Certificate (PCC) issued by PenCom will serve as proof of compliance with the provisions of PRA 2014.
It enjoined federal government MDAs to ensure that all bids tendered by intending organisations for contracts are accompanied by PenCom compliance certificates (PCC)
“In view of the above, all federal government MDAs have been mandated to ensure that all bids tendered by organisations are accompanied by PCC,
organisations who wish to obtain the annual PCC are required to forward their applications to PenCom headquarters in Abuja, or any of its six (6) zonal offices nationwide,” the commission stated. The commission noted that MDAs often times accept spurious evidence of compliance from contractors and are reluctant in ensuring that companies bidding for works fulfill their obligations relating to pensions as enunciated in the Public Procurement Act 2007.
It further urged MDAs to demand for the compliance certificate as a requirement for transacting any business with a private sector organisations adding that appropriate circulars have been issued to all MDAs in that regard.