By Oluwakemi Kindness
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) says Nigeria’s pension assets have surged by 51 per cent in two years, reaching N31.48 trillion from N20.7 trillion.
PenCom Director-General, Omolola Oloworaran announced the figures on Tuesday during the Meet the Press briefing at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, describing the growth as a sign of renewed confidence in the country’s contributory pension scheme.
She said the increase represents N10.7 trillion in additional retirement savings accumulated over the past 24 months.
The commission also revealed that 938,229 new workers joined the Contributory Pension Scheme during the same period, boosting participation and expanding the industry’s asset base.
Oloworaran said pension payments have also improved. Monthly pension disbursements rose by 22 per cent, increasing from N12.2 billion to N14.9 billion.
She added that the Federal Government approved a N32,000 monthly pension increase for eligible retirees of treasury-funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies who retired on or before July 29, 2024, following the implementation of the new national minimum wage.
According to PenCom, more than 195,000 pensioners have already benefited from the adjustment.
Since the Contributory Pension Scheme was introduced in 2004, Nigeria’s pension assets have grown from about N2 trillion to N31.48 trillion, making it one of the country’s largest pools of long-term savings.
