The Federal Government has cleared N758 billion in inherited pension liabilities and moved ahead of scheduled retirements in funding accrued pension rights, with payments for some federal retirees secured through December 2029.

The Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this yesterday at the 2026 PenCom Media Conference in Lagos, saying the intervention had benefited 957,045 Nigerians.

She said the government had not only settled pension obligations dating back to 2007 but has also funded accrued rights beyond the current retirement schedule, with 73,732 beneficiaries now covered by payments representing a 41-month surplus.

Oloworaran said the N758 billion Federal Government Pension Bond had been used to clear obligations inherited from previous administrations.

She said the government inherited 21 months of unpaid accrued pension rights but had now moved to a position where payments had been made through December 2029 for affected beneficiaries.

According to her, the significance of the intervention went beyond the N758 billion involved, as it marked a departure from the practice of pension obligations being carried from one administration to another.

Oloworaran said the development was particularly important for retirees who had completed their years of service but had been forced to wait for benefits they had already earned.

She said the commission was determined to ensure that retirement no longer came with prolonged uncertainty over when benefits would be paid.

The PenCom boss also disclosed that pension assets had risen to N31.48 trillion from N20.79 trillion in July 2024, representing an increase of more than N10.7 trillion, or about 51 per cent, in two years.

The growth, she said, was accompanied by the enrolment of 938,229 new contributors into the Contributory Pension Scheme during the period.

The number of contributors rose from about 10.42 million in July 2024 to 11.32 million by July 2026.

Oloworaran attributed the growth in pension assets to wider participation, contributor confidence and investment returns, adding that the commission was working to deploy pension funds into productive investments without compromising contributors’ interests.

She disclosed that the pension industry was preparing to commit $250 million to infrastructure through a new Pension Industry Infrastructure Investment Consortium.

Under the arrangement, pension fund operators are expected to provide $200 million as anchor investors through cash calls over 10 years, while another $50 million is being sought from development finance institutions.

She said the initiative had received the endorsement of the Pension Industry Leadership Council and would be implemented in phases.

Oloworaran said the objective was to channel long-term pension savings into productive infrastructure while protecting contributors through strict investment and project-selection safeguards.

The PenCom boss also said the commission was tightening enforcement against employers who deduct pension contributions from workers’ salaries but fail to remit them into their Retirement Savings Accounts.

She disclosed that the commission’s cumulative recovery from defaulting employers had reached N36.6 billion as of July 2026.

Oloworaran described the non-remittance of deducted pension contributions as a breach of trust and the law, warning employers that the commission would continue to pursue outstanding contributions.
She said pension deductions represented deferred income belonging to workers and could not be treated as ordinary employer funds.

The commission, she added, was also expanding pension coverage among informal workers through accredited pension agents operating in markets, motor parks, farms and workshops.

Oloworaran said the initiative was designed to bring pension participation closer to millions of workers outside conventional employer-employee arrangements.

She said PenCom would continue to work with state governments and private employers to expand coverage and ensure that more Nigerians build retirement savings before leaving the workforce.

The commission also disclosed that retirement benefit processing had been reduced from procedures that previously took as long as 21 months to a new 48-hour approval timeline.

Oloworaran said all Pension Fund Administrators had been directed to process and approve retirement benefits within the new timeline under PenCom’s Zero Waiting Time policy.