⬆️President Bola Tinubu.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has unveiled a series of measures, including a N758 billion pension bond, implementation of the Minimum Pension Guarantee and the introduction of PenCare, a national retiree healthcare programme, to strengthen Nigeria’s pension system and improve the welfare of retirees.
The President declared that no Nigerian who has served the country would be forgotten in retirement, stressing that his administration was committed to restoring dignity, financial security and tangible benefits to contributors under the Contributory Pension Scheme.
Tinubu spoke on Thursday at the inaugural National Pension Week Leadership Summit held at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja. He was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume.
In his address, themed “Pensions for All: Building a Secure Future Together,” the President described pension payments as a national obligation rather than a favour, insisting that workers must receive the benefits they earned through years of service.
“A pension is not a favour granted by Government. It is a wage earned, deferred and held in trust. It is a promise. And this Administration has resolved that the promise will be kept,” he said.
Tinubu noted that he inherited longstanding pension liabilities, with many retirees forced to wait for years to receive their accrued pension rights.
He said his administration had taken steps to address the situation through the approval of the N758 billion Federal Government Pension Bond, designed to settle accrued pension rights and strengthen the Pension Protection Fund.
The President described the intervention as an act of restitution to Nigerians whose entitlements had remained unpaid for extended periods.
“That was not an accounting exercise. It was an act of restitution to Nigerians who served their country and were made to wait for what they had earned,” he said.
The President also announced that his administration would implement the Minimum Pension Guarantee provided for under the Pension Reform Act 2014, a provision that, according to him, had remained unimplemented for more than 11 years.
“Since enactment, that promise has never been honoured. Under President Tinubu, it will be,” Akume declared.
Another major initiative announced at the summit was PenCare, a national retiree wellbeing programme that will initially provide access to essential healthcare for low-income pensioners.
The programme represents a shift towards a pension system that goes beyond the accumulation of retirement savings to address retirees’ broader welfare needs, particularly access to healthcare and a dignified standard of living.
Tinubu said a robust pension system was not only essential for social protection but also a strategic component of economic transformation under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
According to him, pension funds can mobilise long-term domestic savings, deepen Nigeria’s financial markets and support productive investments capable of driving economic growth.
However, he stressed that the responsibility for ensuring retirement security extended beyond the Federal Government, calling on regulators, employers, pension fund managers and other stakeholders to fulfil their obligations.
He charged the National Pension Commission (PenCom) to remain firm, fair and forward-looking in enforcing pension regulations without fear or favour.
The President also urged public- and private-sector employers to ensure that pension contributions were fully and promptly remitted, warning against the practice of deducting workers’ contributions without transferring the funds to their pension accounts.
“To deduct a worker’s contribution and fail to remit it is not an administrative lapse. It is a breach of trust,” he warned.
Tinubu further challenged Pension Fund Administrators and Pension Fund Custodians to strengthen their expertise, diversify investments responsibly, reduce management costs and focus on the actual benefits delivered to contributors rather than the size of assets under management.
He cautioned that pension investments must generate returns capable of preserving the purchasing power of retirement savings amid inflation.
“Preservation without growth is a slow erosion. Retirement savings that fail to keep pace with inflation quietly betray the very people who saved them,” he said.
While acknowledging the potential of pension assets to support national development through infrastructure and productive enterprises, the President insisted that such investments must never compromise the financial security of pensioners.
He maintained that every investment must undergo rigorous risk-and-return assessments and be guided by the best interests of contributors.
The President also called for an expansion of pension coverage beyond the formal sector, urging the government and industry stakeholders to develop accessible pathways for traders, artisans, farmers, transport workers and self-employed Nigerians to save towards retirement.
He specifically highlighted the need to strengthen the Personal Pension Plan and establish new distribution channels to bring more informal-sector workers into the pension system.
“Pensions for All must mean exactly that: all,” he said.
Tinubu urged state governments, organised labour and other stakeholders to collaborate with the Federal Government to expand pension coverage, improve compliance and strengthen the overall system.
He said the summit should produce concrete commitments and measurable results, including increased enrolment, faster payment of benefits, improved investment performance, greater transparency and better outcomes for retirees.
“The true measure of our success will not be how much money the system holds. It will be how much security, and how much dignity, it delivers,” the President declared.
He reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to ensuring that Nigerians who had devoted their working lives to national service could retire with dignity and confidence.
“Above all, no Nigerian who has served this nation will be forgotten in retirement. Nigeria will keep faith with those who kept faith with Nigeria,” he said.