How Retired Worker’s Pension Rose from N18,000 to N206,000 After 21 Years – PenCom DG

The Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, has highlighted the impact of recent pension reforms, revealing that a retired factory worker who had received a monthly pension of N18,000 for 21 years is now earning N206,000.

Oloworaran shared the story while speaking on the impact of the Federal Government’s pension reforms under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, describing it as evidence of the government’s commitment to improving the welfare of retirees.

She said the retiree checked his phone earlier in the day to receive a pension alert that reflected the increased payment.

“Early this morning, somewhere in Nigeria, a retired factory worker checked the alert on his phone. For 21 years, that alert read ₦18,000. This month, as in every single month now, it reads N206,000,” she said.

The PenCom boss stressed that the increase was not a windfall but the result of the government’s decision to honour its obligations to retired workers.

“He did not win a lottery. He was not given anything he had not already earned. What changed was simple. His country decided to keep its promise,” she added.

According to Oloworaran, the improvement is not limited to one individual, noting that hundreds of thousands of pensioners across the country are benefiting from similar reforms.

She attributed the progress to President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to workers and vulnerable Nigerians, saying the administration has prioritised policies aimed at improving retirees’ welfare.

“Work has been made easy because we have a president that is passionate about the Nigerian people, passionate about vulnerable Nigerians, and doing everything in its power to make sure that it puts more money in the hands of the average Nigerian,” she said.

The PenCom Director-General added that after two years of reforms, the administration’s record on pension welfare speaks for itself.

She said, “Today, standing before you with 24 months of evidence, I can say that that case is no longer emerging. It is on the record. Because history is rarely defined by one decision. It is defined by a pattern of decisions.”