FG Clears Pension Arrears, Extends Funding For Federal Workers’ Benefits To 2029

The Federal Government has cleared the backlog of accrued pension rights for enrolled federal workers, with funding now secured up to December 2029, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) has announced.

The development represents a major improvement in the country’s pension administration, moving from a 21-month funding deficit to a 41-month surplus, according to PenCom Director-General, Omolola Oloworaran.

Oloworaran disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja during the 2026 Pension Correspondents Association of Nigeria Conference. She was represented at the event by the commission’s Head of Corporate Communications, Ibrahim Buwai.

She explained that the improved funding position means the accrued pension rights of federal government employees who are enrolled in the Contributory Pension Scheme but have yet to retire have been fully funded up to December 2029.

According to her, the development marks a significant departure from the previous situation in which pension obligations were 21 months behind schedule.

The PenCom boss also announced that the commission had addressed the longstanding delays associated with the payment of retirement benefits, stating that retirees now receive their benefits within 48 hours of leaving service.

She explained that the payment process, which previously subjected retirees to prolonged waiting periods, had been significantly improved, with the maximum processing time reduced to two days after retirement.

Oloworaran also highlighted two major pension initiatives recently introduced by President Bola Tinubu: the PenCare health insurance programme and the N52,500 minimum pension guarantee.

She said the PenCare initiative was designed to reduce the healthcare expenses of retirees, allowing them to use a larger proportion of their monthly pension payments to cater for other essential needs.

According to her, the programme will be funded by pension operators and PenCom, while an independent Board of Trustees will supervise its operations.

The board is chaired by the commission’s pioneer Director-General, Muhammad Ahmad.

On the N52,500 minimum pension guarantee, Oloworaran explained that eligible retirees currently receiving monthly pensions below the approved threshold would have their payments increased to N52,500.

She disclosed that some beneficiaries had already started receiving payment notifications following the official unveiling of the initiative on Tuesday.

The PenCom Director-General further revealed that the Federal Government had approved an additional exit benefit equivalent to 100 per cent of retirees’ terminal emoluments.

She said the policy took effect from January 1, 2026, adding that eligible workers who retired in 2026 and had submitted the necessary documents had started receiving payments.

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Tolulope Odunaiya, disclosed that the agency had introduced remote pensioner verification and improved life-status confirmation procedures for beneficiaries under the Defined Benefits Scheme.

Odunaiya, who was represented by PTAD’s Head of Corporate Communications, Olugbenga Ajayi, explained that the new arrangement would enable pensioners to complete their verification exercises without travelling to designated centres.

She said the initiative would particularly benefit pensioners living outside Nigeria, who can now participate in the verification process regardless of their location.

She also announced that registration had commenced for the directorate’s proposed health insurance scheme ahead of its official launch.

In a separate address, the Chief Executive Officer of the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria, Anthonia Ifeanyi-Okoro, called for greater investment of pension assets in productive sectors of the economy.

Represented by Olajumoke Akinwa, she identified infrastructure, housing, energy and other viable sectors as areas where pension funds could be invested to support economic development.

However, she stressed that such investments must be undertaken responsibly to ensure that contributors’ retirement savings remain protected.

She noted that pension funds could play an important role in supporting Nigeria’s ambition of building a $1 trillion economy if properly managed and invested in productive ventures.

Also speaking, the Chief Executive Officer of Awabah, Tunji Andrews, announced that the requirements for registering under the Personal Pension Plan had been reduced from 25 information fields to just four.

He said the simplified registration process was aimed at encouraging more Nigerians, particularly those working in the informal sector, to participate in the pension system.

Andrews explained that the company had partnered with Moniepoint and Interswitch to make pension registration and contributions accessible through Point of Sale (POS) terminals.

He also introduced an initiative known as Pension Oga, which will deploy agents to markets and communities to register informal sector workers, collect their contributions and educate them on the importance of retirement planning.

He urged stakeholders to intensify public awareness campaigns to encourage more Nigerians outside formal employment to embrace pension savings.

Similarly, the Acting Managing Director of NPF Pensions Limited, Mohammed Dutse, represented by Chukwuma Ohaka, commended the ongoing reforms in pension administration, particularly efforts aimed at improving the welfare of retired police officers.

A representative of Citizens Pension Limited, Khayran Yunusa Aliu, also called for greater financial inclusion through increased participation in the micro-pension scheme.

However, the National President of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners, Godwin Abumisi, appealed to the Federal Government to extend the newly approved exit benefits to workers who retired between 2004 and December 2025.

Abumisi, who was represented by Ahmad Ibrahim Gazali, also disclosed that N12.3 billion had been released for the exit-benefit programme.

Earlier, the President of the Pension Correspondents Association of Nigeria, Nana Musa, urged journalists covering the pension sector to promote accountability and improve public understanding of pension reforms through accurate and responsible reporting.

The conference provided an opportunity for pension stakeholders to assess ongoing reforms, discuss challenges facing retirees and examine ways of strengthening Nigeria’s pension system to guarantee better welfare for workers after retirement.

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