The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has announced a N52,500 minimum monthly pension for 173,209 eligible retirees, following the activation of the Minimum Pension Guarantee (MPG) by President Bola Tinubu, ending a 22-year delay in implementing the provision under Nigeria’s pension framework.
The initiative, alongside the newly launched PenCare healthcare scheme, forms part of the Presidential Pension Security Initiatives unveiled on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at the State House Banquet Hall in Abuja.
President Tinubu, who was represented by Senate President Godswill Akpabio at the event, said the Minimum Pension Guarantee was one of the outstanding commitments under the pension reform framework.
He explained that Section 71 of the Pension Reform Act provided for a guaranteed minimum pension for contributors, while Sections 82 and 84 reinforced the commitment and established a funding mechanism.
However, the provisions remained unimplemented for 22 years, leaving eligible retirees without the guaranteed minimum income.
“Today, I dare say that lie ends here today. By the authority vested in me as President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I hereby declare the minimum pension guarantee scheme commences with effect from today,” Tinubu said.
He added that the scheme would be administered by PenCom under the Pension Reform Act.
Speaking at the launch, PenCom Director-General, Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed that the minimum pension had been fixed at N52,500 monthly, adding that the amount would be subject to upward reviews.
She said more than N400 billion had been provided in the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) to finance the initiative, with 173,209 Nigerians eligible to benefit.
“More than N400 billion stands in the Pension Protection Fund—173,209 Nigerians will be eligible,” she said, adding that beneficiaries would begin receiving credit alerts following the launch.
According to PenCom, 34 per cent of eligible retirees are from the federal public service, 12 per cent from state services, while 54 per cent are from the private sector.
The commission also disclosed that the Federal Government and the pension industry had contributed to the fund, while calling on private sector stakeholders to increase their contributions to strengthen its financial sustainability.
Beyond the minimum pension guarantee, the government also launched PenCare, a healthcare initiative designed to provide low-income retirees with access to essential medical services without charge.
Tinubu said the programme was funded by the pension industry and that the first health access cards would be distributed to pensioners and beneficiaries immediately.
“For the first time in our dear history, the Nigerian retiree holds two things at once: an income that cannot fall below the floor, and a card that opens the door of a hospital. That is social security,” he said.
Oloworaran disclosed that the pension industry had set aside more than N7 billion to finance healthcare services under PenCare, describing the initiative as a funded and sustainable healthcare arrangement.
The PenCom chief also provided an update on outstanding pension liabilities inherited by state governments, disclosing that states had accumulated more than N2 trillion in pension obligations when the current administration began its reforms.
She said N1.07 trillion of the inherited liabilities had been settled as of the announcement.
Meanwhile, the commission is seeking to expand pension coverage beyond the formal workforce by encouraging the development of sustainable incentives to attract workers in the informal sector.
Oloworaran said the President had asked pension industry stakeholders to develop incentives capable of bringing millions of informal sector workers into the pension system.
Speaking on behalf of pension industry stakeholders, Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu, welcomed the initiatives, saying retirement security should include both reliable income and access to healthcare.
He said the initiatives addressed two major concerns facing retirees, particularly those with limited financial resources and inadequate access to medical services.
