Nigeria has funded federal workers' pension rights up to December 2029, PenCom says

Abuja — The Federal Government has funded the accrued pension rights of enrolled federal workers up to December 2029, moving from a 21-month backlog to a 41-month surplus, the National Pension Commission (PenCom) said on Wednesday.

Director-General Omolola Oloworaran, represented by the commission's head of corporate communications, Ibrahim Buwai, gave the figures at the 2026 Pension Correspondents Association of Nigeria conference in Abuja, BusinessDay reported. It means federal employees in the Contributory Pension Scheme who have not yet retired have had their accrued rights paid in well ahead of time.

"The issue of delays in the payment of pensions has now become history, and now pensions are being paid within a maximum of 48 hours from retirement," she said.

New support for retirees

Oloworaran pointed to two measures launched by President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday: PenCare, a health insurance programme for retirees funded by pension operators and PenCom, and a minimum pension guarantee of N52,500 a month, under which smaller pensions are topped up to that level. Some beneficiaries had already received payment alerts, she said.

The government has also approved additional exit benefits equal to 100% of terminal pay for eligible retirees from 1 January 2026, and those retiring this year with complete documents have started receiving them.

The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate said pensioners in the old Defined Benefits Scheme can now verify themselves remotely, from abroad or from their villages, without travelling to a centre.

For informal workers, Tunji Andrews, chief executive of Awabah, said the Personal Pension Plan sign-up form had been cut from 25 fields to four, making it possible to enrol and pay contributions through point-of-sale terminals.

Source: BusinessDay, 12 November 2026.