The Director General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Ms. Omolola Oloworaran, has disclosed that the nation’s pension assets grew by 51% in two years, from N20.79 trillion to N31.48 trillion.
Oloworaran, who spoke on Tuesday while briefing the State House Press Corps on Two Years of Historic Pension Transformation, also announced that membership of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) increased by nearly 1 million to 11.32 million.
“Two years ago, that confidence needed to be restored. Today, the verdict is in. Pension assets have grown from N20.7tn to N31.48tn as of this month. That is a 51 per cent increase, representing N10.7tn in new retirement wealth,” she said.
She highlighted the impact of the release of the N758 billion Pension Bond by President Bola Tinubu, which has transformed the fortunes of Nigerian pensioners and settled longstanding pension liabilities dating back to 2007, alongside other bold initiatives being implemented by the Commission.
Nigeria’s pension industry has recorded one of the most significant financial sector transformations in the country’s history. Before the pension reform in 2004, the industry was largely underdeveloped, burdened by huge unpaid pension liabilities, weak administration, and limited retirement savings coverage.
With the introduction of the Pension Reform Act in 2004 and the establishment of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), the industry began a steady growth trajectory. From virtually no structured pension assets under the CPS in 2004, total pension assets have grown to approximately ₦31.48 trillion as of July 2026.
Several factors have driven this growth: Mandatory monthly pension contributions from employers and employees under the CPS, Strong regulatory oversight by the National Pension Commission (PenCom), which improved transparency and accountability, Professional fund management by Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), Consistent investment returns from government securities, equities, and other approved assets, and Increased public confidence in the pension system compared to the old defined benefit scheme.
Despite challenges such as inflation, informal sector penetration, and limited infrastructure investments, the Nigerian pension industry remains one of the strongest success stories of financial sector reform in the country.
According to Oloworaran, the PenCom boss said the growth was driven not only by increased investment returns but also by a rise in active participation in the Contributory Pension Scheme, with 938,229 new contributors joining over the last 24 months.
On the impact of the reforms on retirees, she said the commission had prioritised improving pension payments, disclosing that aggregate monthly pension payments increased by 22 per cent, from N12.2bn to N14.9bn.
The DG also announced that following the implementation of the new national minimum wage, the Federal Government approved a N32,000 monthly consequential pension adjustment for eligible retirees of treasury-funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies who retired on or before July 29, 2024, adding that more than 195,000 pensioners had already benefited from the adjustment.
