Omotayo Adigun
The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has announced that the total value of pension assets under its management has surpassed the significant milestone of ₦23 trillion as of February 2025.
This was disclosed by the Director-General (DG) of PenCom, Omolola Oloworaran, during the first run 2025 consultative forum for states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) held in Kano on Wednesday.
In her address, Oloworaran highlighted PenCom‘s enhanced enforcement efforts, which have yielded substantial results in recovering outstanding pension contributions from defaulting employers.
She stated that the commission successfully recovered a total of ₦1.58 billion from these employers, demonstrating the agency’s commitment to ensuring compliance with the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The DG also noted a positive trend in state remittances, indicating a growing acceptance and adoption of the CPS across the sub-national levels of government. This improvement suggests increasing awareness and commitment to the scheme, which is designed to provide a more sustainable and reliable retirement system for workers.
Despite these notable achievements, Oloworaran acknowledged that challenges persist in the full implementation of the CPS across all states. She revealed that, as of the reporting period, only 25 states and the FCT have passed the necessary laws to implement the contributory pension scheme.
A further six states are currently operating hybrid pension schemes, which combine elements of both the defined benefits and the CPS, while another six states have bills at advanced stages of the legislative process.
The DG pointed out specific progress made in several states, including Katsina, Yobe, Bauchi, and Abia. However, she emphasized that the full implementation of the CPS remains limited to just eight states across the federation.
To address this implementation gap, Oloworaran announced that PenCom has introduced a flexible adoption model. This innovative approach allows states to commence implementation of the CPS with new employees or those with less than 10 years of service.
Furthermore, PenCom is actively offering technical assistance to state governments to aid in the complex process of planning for legacy pension liabilities and transitioning their entire workforce to the CPS in a manner that ensures long-term financial sustainability.
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“With sustained dialogue, technical collaboration, and strong political will, we are confident of reaching this goal,” Oloworaran stated, expressing optimism about achieving full CPS implementation nationwide.
Describing the consultative forum as more than just a routine meeting, the Director-General characterized it as “a call to collective action.”
She urged participants to actively engage in sharing ideas and to commit to collaboratively building a more inclusive and robust pension system for all Nigerians.
Also speaking at the forum, the Head of Service in Kano State, Abdullahi Musa, reaffirmed the state’s unwavering commitment to ongoing pension reforms. Musa commended PenCom for its pivotal role in promoting best practices within the pension sector and lauded the forum as a crucial platform for dialogue, peer learning, and the development of effective pension policies.
Musa highlighted the significant strides Kano State has made in restructuring its pension system, notably through the adoption of a hybrid model that strategically combines elements of the traditional defined benefits scheme with the more modern CPS.
He further emphasized the commitment of the current administration under Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf to addressing historical pension arrears and improving the overall management of retirement benefits for state employees.
According to the Head of Service, the Kano State government has demonstrably acted on this commitment by disbursing a substantial N16 billion in outstanding pension entitlements.
This significant payment represents approximately 40 percent of the total pension liabilities inherited from previous administrations, showcasing a tangible effort to alleviate the burden on retirees.