The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has reduced pension benefit approval timelines from 21 months to just 48 hours, as part of sweeping reforms transforming Nigeria’s contributory pension scheme.
Director-General Omolola Oloworaran disclosed this on Tuesday at the State House press briefing in Abuja, stating that the 48-hour turnaround is now a mandatory service standard binding on all Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), not merely a performance target.
“Benefits that once took months are now approved within 48 hours—not as a target, but as a mandate binding every PFA,” she said.
Ms Oloworaran also reported that compliance with pension remittances had risen by 28 per cent, while recoveries of unremitted contributions had surpassed N36 billion over two years—compared with N28 billion previously recovered—underscoring the commission’s enhanced enforcement capacity.
Within three months, PenCom will launch the minimum pension guarantee and PenCare to strengthen social protection for retirees. “The minimum pension guarantee will provide a guaranteed income floor beneath every pensioner, while PenCare will offer free healthcare for our most vulnerable retirees,” she explained.
The Director-General described the Federal Government’s N758 billion pension bond as one of Nigeria’s most significant pension interventions, benefiting 957,045 retirees. The bond cleared accrued pension liabilities dating back to 2007 and transformed a 21-month arrears position into a 41-month surplus.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu made a different choice. He chose to end that chapter,” she said.
Ms Oloworaran announced plans to establish a nationwide pension distribution network through accredited agents to deepen coverage and create jobs. New investment frameworks are also being developed to channel pension assets into infrastructure projects—including roads, power, healthcare, education, and agriculture—while safeguarding contributors’ funds.
Pension assets have grown from N20.79 trillion to N31.48 trillion within two years—an increase of more than N10.7 trillion, or 51 per cent—with 938,229 additional Nigerians joining the scheme during the period. “Confidence is back. The system is growing,” she affirmed.
Ms Oloworaran hailed President Tinubu as one of Nigeria’s most pro-worker and pro-retiree leaders, adding that his administration had transformed pension administration into an instrument of justice, dignity, and economic opportunity.