President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has announced a guaranteed minimum monthly pension of ₦52,500 for 173,209 eligible retirees under Nigeria’s Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), alongside a new free healthcare initiative for low-income pensioners.

The President unveiled the initiatives on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, during the launch of the Presidential Pension Security Initiatives at the State House, Abuja. He was represented at the event by Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

The Minimum Pension Guarantee Scheme is designed to ensure that eligible retirees whose monthly pension falls below ₦52,500 receive an increase to the new minimum threshold.

Declaring the scheme operational, Tinubu said the initiative would provide a financial safety net for Nigerian retirees who contributed under the Contributory Pension Scheme.

According to the President, the minimum pension guarantee was provided for under the Pension Reform Act of 2004 and retained in the 2014 legislation but had remained unimplemented for 22 years.

Speaking at the event, Director-General of the National Pension Commission (PenCom), Omolola Oloworaran, disclosed that 173,209 retirees had been identified as beneficiaries of the scheme.

She explained that the beneficiaries comprise 34 per cent of retirees from the federal public service, 12 per cent from state governments and 54 per cent from the private sector.

Oloworaran said the ₦52,500 minimum monthly pension had been validated by an actuary and would undergo periodic reviews. She added that more than ₦400 billion was available in the Pension Protection Fund to finance the initiative.

However, she clarified that the participation of state-sector retirees would depend on their respective states' funding arrangements and participation in the Pension Protection Fund.

Tinubu Introduces Free Healthcare for Retirees

In another major announcement, the President launched the Pension Industry Healthcare Plan for Retirees, known as PenCare, to provide essential healthcare services free of charge to eligible low-income pensioners.

The initiative is intended to reduce the financial burden of medical expenses on retirees, many of whom struggle to meet healthcare costs with their monthly pension payments.

PenCom disclosed that the pension industry had committed more than ₦7 billion to the healthcare programme, with insurance premiums already paid to provide coverage for nearly 30,000 retirees.

FG Issues ₦758bn Bond to Clear Pension Obligations

Tinubu also disclosed that his administration had issued a ₦758 billion bond to address outstanding pension obligations.

Additionally, the Federal Government approved a ₦32,000 monthly consequential adjustment for affected federal pensioners as part of efforts to improve their retirement benefits.

The President urged successive administrations to sustain the Minimum Pension Guarantee Scheme, stressing that the minimum amount should be reviewed upwards when necessary rather than withdrawn.

The newly introduced initiatives represent a significant policy intervention in Nigeria's pension system, with the Federal Government seeking to strengthen retirement income security, address outstanding pension obligations and expand access to affordable healthcare for eligible retirees.