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Barbara Bako, Abuja.
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has commenced the disbursement of the N758 billion Federal Government bond approved to settle outstanding pension liabilities, with over N600 billion already paid to beneficiaries...
PenCom Director-General, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja while presenting her one-year scorecard at the Pension Revolution Summit, noting that the bond, approved by President Bola Tinubu in February 2025, has now been fully cashed.
She said Nigeria’s pension assets have grown to about N27 trillion, attributing the expansion to recent policy decisions and the rollout of “Pension Revolution 2.0”, a reform agenda aimed at strengthening governance, expanding coverage and future-proofing the pension industry.
Oloworaran said the past year had focused on restoring confidence in the contributory pension scheme (CPS), improving regulatory oversight and repositioning the industry for long-term stability.
According to her, Pension Revolution 2.0 represents the most far reaching reform of the sector since 2004, introducing tighter supervision, governance reforms, digital transformation and industry realignment.
To improve benefit adequacy, she said PenCom introduced post retirement enhancements which have added about N2.68 billion to monthly pension payments for CPS retirees since June 2025.
On digital reforms, the Director General said key pension processes have now been fully automated, including pension plan certificates, benefit processing and contribution remittances, reducing delays and manual bottlenecks.
She added that the Commission also established the Pension Industry Leadership Council to promote collaboration, accountability and innovation across the sector.
Oloworaran described the restructuring of the Micro Pension Plan into the Personal Pension Plan as one of the year’s defining reforms, aimed at expanding coverage among informal sector workers such as artisans, traders, gig workers and creatives, with simplified onboarding requirements.
She said digital enrolment has been expanded and supported by the introduction of accredited pension agents, which she described as both a coverage-expansion and employment initiative designed to promote financial inclusion while creating jobs for young Nigerians.
On enforcement, the PenCom boss disclosed that N32.27 billion has been recovered from defaulting employers between June 2012 and September 2025, comprising N15.87 billion in outstanding contributions and N16.40 billion in penalties.
She added that enforcement activities intensified in the third quarter of 2025, with N2.06 billion recovered from 49 defaulting employers within the period.
On compliance by subnational governments, Oloworaran said only eight of the 36 states have fully complied with the CPS, noting that the Commission is engaging all states to achieve full adoption.
She also said the Nigeria Police Force is yet to exit the CPS, adding that PenCom is working to address outstanding issues rather than allow the police to withdraw from the scheme.
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According to her, about N132 billion representing 22 per cent of the N338 billion liability has so far been paid, noting that police personnel account for about 40 per cent of public service pensioners.
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