The National Pension Commission has recovered over N4.04 billion in unremitted pension contributions between January and November 2025, marking a major increase of more than 180 per cent compared with the N1.44 billion recovered in the entire 2024 financial year. The development highlights renewed enforcement efforts by the pension regulator aimed at improving compliance and strengthening confidence in Nigeria’s pension system.
The Director-General of PenCom, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed this in Abuja on Tuesday while presenting her one-year scorecard at the Pension Revolution Summit and the 2025 Media Conference. She said the sharp rise in recoveries was the result of deliberate and firm regulatory actions taken by the commission to address the long-standing issue of pension contribution non-remittances by employers.
According to Oloworaran, PenCom issued a key compliance circular in the second quarter of 2025 that linked the issuance of Pension Clearance Certificates to participation across the pension industry value chain. She explained that the move introduced real economic consequences for defaulting employers and made compliance a requirement for doing business within the pension ecosystem.
She said the impact of the directive was immediate and measurable. From January to November 2025, pension recoveries stood at N4.04 billion, compared with N1.44 billion recorded throughout 2024. She noted that N2.06 billion was recovered in the third quarter of 2025 alone, which was almost 150 per cent of the total amount recovered in the whole of the previous year.
Oloworaran added that the improvement in compliance was also reflected in the value of Pension Clearance Certificates issued during the period. She said that before the third quarter of 2025, certificates were issued at an average quarterly value of about N150 billion. However, following the introduction of the circular, the value rose significantly to about N233 billion in the third quarter.
She explained that the figures showed a clear link between enforcement and compliance, stressing that employers were more likely to meet their obligations when pension compliance was tied to real financial and operational consequences. According to her, the recovery drive was part of a broader reform agenda she took on after her confirmation as Director-General about a year ago.
Oloworaran said her mandate included rebuilding trust in the pension system, expanding coverage, strengthening governance, and repositioning the Contributory Pension Scheme as a reliable pillar of national economic stability. She described the past year as one defined by decisive actions, structural reforms and visible outcomes.
She highlighted the launch of Pension Revolution 2.0, which she described as the most comprehensive reform in the pension industry since 2004. According to her, the initiative went beyond surface-level changes and focused on deep structural reforms that combined new regulations, stronger supervision, governance improvements, digital transformation and industry realignment.
The PenCom boss also referred to the Presidential approval and disbursement of N758 billion to clear outstanding pension liabilities as a major milestone. She said the intervention addressed long-standing arrears and sent a strong message that the Federal Government was committed to meeting its obligations to workers and retirees. She added that pension increase backlogs for Federal Government treasury-funded retirees, some of which dated back to 2007, had now been cleared.
She further disclosed that from July 2025, zero waiting time for the payment of accrued pension rights was restored, ensuring that retirees now receive their entitlements as and when due. To improve benefit adequacy, she said PenCom introduced Pension Boost 1.0, which has added about N2.68 billion to monthly pension payments for retirees under the Contributory Pension Scheme.
Oloworaran explained that these improvements were aimed at improving the quality of life of retirees and restoring dignity to retirement. She said the reforms were not just about figures on paper but had real effects on the wellbeing of pensioners, including their ability to meet basic needs such as food, healthcare and housing.
On operational efficiency, she said the commission had achieved full automation of key pension processes, including benefit processing, contribution remittance platforms and the Pension Clearance Certificate system. According to her, the move has reduced leakages, improved transparency and shortened processing timelines across the industry.
She also announced the inauguration of the board of trustees of the PenCare Initiative, an industry-wide programme designed to provide free and accessible healthcare for low-income retirees. She said the initiative was aimed at reducing the financial burden of medical expenses on pensioners and ensuring that retirement is not defined by anxiety over healthcare costs.
As part of efforts to expand pension coverage, Oloworaran said the Micro Pension Plan had been restructured and rebranded as the Personal Pension Plan to better serve workers in the informal sector. She explained that the plan targets artisans, traders, gig workers, creatives and other self-employed Nigerians who were previously excluded from formal pension arrangements.
Under the new structure, she said PenCom introduced Accredited Pension Agents to drive enrolment and support job creation. She noted that the agents would be trained, certified and deployed nationwide, creating new employment opportunities while expanding pension coverage.
On governance, Oloworaran disclosed that the commission raised capital requirements for pension operators and strengthened regulations to eliminate practices such as shadow directorships. She said transparency, accountability and fit-and-proper leadership were now central to pension administration.
She thanked pension operators and the media for their cooperation and oversight, stressing that compliance, innovation and service delivery were mandatory in the current reform era. She added that retirement security was a right, not a privilege, and assured stakeholders that the commission would continue to protect the interests of contributors and retirees.
