From Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has engaged the services of consulting firm, KPMG to conduct a review of its stalled N15 billion e-NSITF project.
NSITF’s Managing Director, Oluwaseun Faleye, disclosed this during a media parley and the launch of its mass advocacy and sensitisation campaign in Abuja on Wednesday.
In 2023, the federal government approved phase two of the electronic Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (e-NSITF), which will enable concessionaires to upgrade the infrastructure for N15 billion.
However, speaking at the event, Faleye acknowledged that while digitalisation is critical to the agency’s operations, past attempts, including the e-NSITF project awarded in 2022, have faced significant challenges.
To ensure accountability, he said the new NSITF leadership has brought in KPMG to assess the contractor’s performance against the project’s original scope.
The MD emphasised that the fund is determined to drive digital transformation and improve service delivery for millions of Nigerian workers despite existing setbacks.
“NSITF has made several attempts at digitalisation in the past, but unfortunately we still have enormous challenges.
“You referred to the E-NSITF project in the past. For my record, that project was awarded sometime in 2022. As we speak, there is nothing on ground to suggest that anything worthy of good has been delivered. The feedback that we have internally is that that project is severely challenged in terms of delivery.
“But of course, we are looking at it, we are looking at what has been delivered. This is the scope of work. And it is on that basis that we have employed the services of a reputable consultant from KPMG, to be specific, to review what was delivered by the contractor, vis-à-vis what he was contracted to deliver.
“But I mean, digitalization for us is what we’re expecting to be a tool for advancement of what we do. And that tool should be clear to everybody to see.
For me, looking at NSITF internal processes and procedures, that seems very much lacking. And it is in that regard that we resolve that we will take the bull by the horn and chart our course by ourselves,” he stated.
The MD explained that the Mass Advocacy and Sensitization Campaign is aimed at boosting awareness and compliance with the Employees’ Compensation Scheme (ECS)
He further noted that the media parley was necessary considering the critical role that journalists play in shaping public perception on labour and social security issues.
“This campaign will leverage media engagement, stakeholder partnerships such as this, and grassroots outreach to ensure that every worker, employer and relevant stakeholders understand their rights and obligations under the scheme. We intend to use your skillset to achieve this and we intend to use both the traditional and new media to advocate for this benefit and we will be relying on you” he said.
He called on journalists to also demand coverage under the Employees’ Compensation Scheme, stressing the high-risk nature of journalism and the need for social protection for media professionals.
The MD also disclosed that the Fund has paid over 100 claims since his assumption of office in July 2024, including a recent N25 million compensation to National Assembly staff.
Recognizing that 70% of Nigeria’s economy operates within the informal sector, Faleye announced plans to extend NSITF’s coverage to small businesses, artisans, traders, and transport workers.