President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday asked Nigerians to judge his administration by its record on pension reforms, as the Federal Government launched a minimum pension guarantee and a free healthcare scheme for low-income retirees.
The two initiatives were unveiled at the Presidential Pension Security Initiatives launch at the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja. Tinubu, who was represented by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, said the reforms are meant to end decades of poor retirement income and lack of healthcare access for pensioners.
According to the President, the Minimum Pension Guarantee introduces a N52,500 monthly income floor for eligible retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS). The scheme takes effect immediately and will be overseen by the National Pension Commission (PenCom) in line with the Pension Reform Act. He noted that the guarantee has been in the law for over 22 years but was never implemented by successive administrations.
PenCom Director-General, Omolola Oloworaran, said 173,209 retirees will benefit from the N52,500 floor at inception, with 34 per cent from the federal public service, 12 per cent from state services, and 54 per cent from the private sector. She said over N400 billion has been provided in the Pension Protection Fund to finance the scheme, describing it as a funded intervention backed by contributions from the Federal Government and the pension industry.
The second initiative, PenCare, is designed to give low-income pensioners free access to essential medical services. President Tinubu said many pensioners exhaust their savings on hospital bills, adding that a pension that cannot cover medicine is not meaningful. PenCom said more than N7 billion has been set aside by the pension industry for PenCare, with initial beneficiaries to receive healthcare access cards.
President Tinubu also said the government has issued a N758 billion pension bond to settle accrued pension rights, approved consequential adjustments for federal pensioners earning below minimum wage, and increased pensions for legacy retirees under the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund from N18,000 to N206,000 monthly. He warned employers against withholding workers’ pension contributions.
PenCom added that it is working to expand pension coverage to the informal sector, including traders, artisans, farmers and transport workers, through accredited pension agents and new incentives.