The Federal Government has cleared a 21-month pension funding backlog and prefunded the accrued pension rights of enrolled federal workers through December 2029, transitioning the scheme into a 41-month funding surplus.
​The Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, announced the milestone on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, during the 2026 Pension Correspondents Association of Nigeria (PenCAN) Conference in Abuja.
Delivering the keynote address on her behalf, PenCom’s Head of Corporate Communications, Ibrahim Buwai, stated that prospective federal retirees now have their retirement benefits secured well ahead of their exit from active service. Oloworaran noted in her remarks that the commission had moved from a position where full pension rights were 21 months in arrears to standing at 41 months in surplus.
​With the clearance of the arrears and the forward funding through 2029, retirement benefits under the Contributory Pension Scheme are now processed within 48 hours for eligible retirees who submit the required documentation.
To further bolster post-service welfare, Oloworaran revealed that the Federal Government has released ₦12.3 billion to fund additional exit benefits equivalent to 100 per cent of terminal emoluments for eligible workers. This policy took effect on January 1, 2026, and retirees who exited service this year and completed their documentation have already begun receiving their payments.
​Addressing the conference theme, “The Role of Regulator, Operators in Actualising Nigeria’s $1 Trillion Economy Target,” industry leaders also highlighted major strides in expanding pension coverage to the informal sector. Tunji Andrews, Chief Executive Officer of Awabah, explained that registration requirements for PenCom’s voluntary Personal Pension Plan (PPP) were recently streamlined from 25 data fields to just four.
According to Andrews, this simplification allows informal workers to register and make micro-contributions directly through point-of-sale (POS) terminals via partnerships with Moniepoint and Interswitch.
​Earlier in the session, PenCAN President Nana Musa urged financial journalists to promote transparency and deepen public trust in ongoing pension reforms through accurate, fact-based reporting.
Echoing the broader economic vision of the forum, Anthonia Ifeanyi-Okoro, representing the Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp), called on the government to unlock accumulated pension assets to help finance critical infrastructure and drive Nigeria’s $1 trillion economic aspiration.
