FG Clears Pension Backlog, Prefunds Benefits Until 2029

The Federal Government has cleared its outstanding backlog of accrued pension rights for enrolled federal workers yet to retire, moving from a 21-month funding deficit to a 41-month surplus covering payments through December 2029.

The Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this on Wednesday during the 2026 Pension Correspondents Association of Nigeria Conference in Abuja.

Oloworaran, represented by the commission’s Head of Corporate Communications, Ibrahim Buwai, said the development meant that accrued pension rights for enrolled federal employees had been funded well ahead of their retirement dates.

She explained that the government had moved from owing 21 months of accrued pension obligations to maintaining a 41-month funding surplus.

The PenCom chief also said delays in processing retirement benefits had largely been eliminated, with payments now processed within a maximum of 48 hours after retirement.

She highlighted the introduction of the PenCare health insurance programme and the N52,500 minimum pension guarantee, both launched by President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday.

According to her, PenCare is designed to reduce retirees’ medical expenses and enable them to devote more of their monthly pension income to other essential needs.

She explained that the programme would be funded by pension operators and PenCom, with an independent board of trustees chaired by the commission’s pioneer Director-General, Muhammad Ahmad.

On the minimum pension guarantee, Oloworaran said eligible retirees receiving less than N52,500 monthly would have their pensions increased to the approved threshold. She added that some beneficiaries had already received payment alerts following the programme's launch.

She further disclosed that the Federal Government had approved additional exit benefits equivalent to 100 per cent of terminal emoluments for eligible retirees, effective January 1, 2026.

According to her, retirees who left service in 2026 and submitted the required documentation had started receiving the approved payments.

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate, Tolulope Odunaiya, represented by the Head of Corporate Communications, Olugbenga Ajayi, said the agency had introduced remote verification and improved life-status checks for pensioners under the Defined Benefits Scheme.

She explained that the initiative would enable pensioners living within and outside Nigeria to complete their verification without travelling to designated offices.

Odunaiya also disclosed that registration had commenced for the directorate’s proposed health insurance programme ahead of its formal launch.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria, Anthonia Ifeanyi-Okoro, represented by Olajumoke Akinwa, called for responsible investment of pension assets in infrastructure, housing, energy and other productive sectors to support economic growth.

Similarly, Awabah Chief Executive Officer, Tunji Andrews, disclosed that the requirements for enrolling in the Personal Pension Plan had been reduced from 25 fields to four to simplify registration.

He said the innovation had enabled the integration of pension registration and contributions into point-of-sale terminals through partnerships with Moniepoint and Interswitch.

Andrews added that the organisation had introduced Pension Oga, an initiative designed to deploy agents to markets and communities to register informal-sector workers, collect contributions and promote pension awareness.