The National Pension Commission (PenCom) says it is set to strengthen its investment framework to channel pension funds into critical sectors such as infrastructure, energy, healthcare and agriculture while ensuring contributors continue to earn competitive returns.
PenCom Director-General, Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this during a media briefing in Abuja, where she highlighted the Commission’s achievements over the past two years.
According to her, pension assets grew by 51 per cent, rising from ₦20.79 trillion in July 2024 to ₦31.48 trillion as of July 10, 2026.
Oloworaran said the increase was driven by the recovery of outstanding pension contributions, improved compliance, flexible investment strategies and stronger collaboration with anti-corruption agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC).
“We are refining our investment frameworks to direct pension capital into critical national assets while maintaining competitive returns for contributors,” she said.
The PenCom boss also announced three major initiatives aimed at improving pension coverage and retirees’ welfare.
The first is a health insurance programme, expected to launch within the next three months. The pilot phase will provide free health insurance for 30,000 low-income retirees aged 60 years and above who earn ₦150,000 or less monthly, before expanding nationwide.
The second initiative is the introduction of a Minimum Pension Guarantee, designed to ensure that no retiree under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) receives less than a guaranteed minimum income.
The third initiative focuses on expanding pension coverage in the informal sector through the Personal Pension Plan and a network of Accredited Pension Agents, targeting traders, artisans, transport workers and fintech users.
PenCom also revealed that the number of contributors under the Contributory Pension Scheme increased by 938,229, bringing the total number of registered contributors to 11.32 million.
To improve retirees’ welfare, the Commission said it introduced Pension Boost 1.0, which increased monthly pension payments by 22 per cent, from ₦12.2 billion to ₦14.9 billion.
It also implemented the ₦32,000 consequential pension adjustment for more than 195,000 treasury-funded retirees following the new national minimum wage.
In addition, PenCom announced the first pension review for Nigerian Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) retirees in 21 years, with some beneficiaries receiving increases of up to 1,173 per cent, alongside the payment of ₦8.7 billion in outstanding pension arrears to 2,116 retirees.
