Tinubu launches minimum pension of 52,500 naira for 173,209 retirees
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Punch and Leadership
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has launched a monthly minimum pension of 52,500 naira for 173,209 retirees under the contributory scheme and inaugurated PenCare, a free healthcare scheme for low-income retirees. The guarantee, planned since 2004 but never implemented for 22 years, now takes effect, according to Punch.
The director general of the National Pension Commission, Omolola Oloworaran, said all eligible retirees under the contributory scheme receiving less than 52,500 naira would be raised to that amount, in both the public and private sectors. She said 54% of the affected retirees came from the private sector and that more than 65% of retirees in that sector earned less than 52,500 naira. Retirees in the states will, however, need a contribution from their government to the Pension Protection Fund to be covered.
PenCare targets 30,000 low-income retirees, around 25,000 of whom had already been registered during the initial rollout. Some had received their healthcare access card and the others can request it from their pension fund administrator, Oloworaran said.
Tinubu said his government had also approved a monthly increase of 32,000 naira for affected federal retirees. He cited the case of former Nigeria Airways employees whose pensions had risen, for some, from 80,000 to 206,000 naira.
The president attributed some of these measures to his government’s economic reforms, notably the removal of the fuel subsidy and the unification of exchange rates. He also said medical expenses could absorb savings accumulated during retirement, justifying the combination of a guaranteed minimum income and healthcare coverage.
Update of 11 November 2026: Nigeria’s National Pension Commission requires states to contribute to the 400 billion naira Pension Protection Fund before their retirees can receive the minimum guarantee of 52,500 naira per month. Read: Nigeria makes minimum pension conditional on state contribution.
