FG prioritises private sector growth over external debt — Edun
…Releases N302bn pension accrued rights in five years
By Seun Ibiyemi
The Minister of Finance, Wale Edun has reiterated the country’s commitment to private sector-driven growth, and reduced reliance on external debt financing during a meeting with the Executive Director of World Bank, Zainab Ahmed.
Edun acknowledged the World Bank’s role in supporting Nigeria’s development but emphasised the government’s focus on fostering a business-friendly environment that attracts sustainable investments. Part of a broader strategy to leverage alternative financing sources beyond traditional multilateral loans.
Ahmed, who previously served as Nigeria’s Minister of Finance, praised the country’s macroeconomic reforms which have improved fiscal stability and investor confidence.
She highlighted the World Bank’s recent financial reforms that have enhanced its lending capacity, making an additional $150 billion available over the next decade.
A key area of discussion was Nigeria’s role in Mission 300, the World Bank’s initiative to provide electricity access to 300 million Africans.
Edun reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to the programme, stressing that improved power infrastructure is critical for economic growth, industrial expansion, and private sector competitiveness.
Edun emphasised that President Tinubu remains focused on strengthening Nigeria’s economic foundation, reducing dependency on external borrowing, and ensuring long-term, private-sector-led development.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has released a total of N302 billion towards the settlement of pension accrued rights of its retirees over the past five years.
The amount covers the accrued rights benefits for almost 63, 000 employees in Treasury Funded MDAs who left employment between 2020 and third quarter of 2024, according to data sourced by the National Pension Commission (PenCom).
Accrued rights are the accumulated pension benefits for employees of FGN Treasury funded MDAs, from their date of first employment up to June 30, 2004, before the Contributory Pension Scheme.
Recall that the Federal Government recently released N22 billion for pension accrued rights of its employees that retired between October 2023 and January 2024.
This disbursement brings the total amount released so far from the 2024 Appropriation for accrued rights settlement to N66 billion.
PenCom said the fund was released by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF) as part of the 2024 Appropriation for the period July to September.
According to the Commission, “These funds were paid into the Retirement Benefits Bond Redemption Fund (RBBRF) Account at the Central Bank of Nigeria to partially settle unpaid Pension accrued rights for retirees of Federal Government Treasury-funded ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).”
“The disbursed funds have been applied to settle the accrued pension rights of retirees who were duly verified and enrolled, covering the period October 2023 to January 2024, as well as some deceased employees.
“Accordingly, the remittances have been credited directly to the Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) of the affected retirees through their respective Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).”
The Commission urged all affected retirees to contact their PFAs to complete the necessary documentation to access their retirement benefits.
PenCom has also directed PFAs to expedite the processing of payments to ensure retirees promptly receive their entitlements.
The Commission further appreciates the patience and understanding of retirees and reaffirms its commitment to engaging with relevant authorities to ensure the settlement of all unpaid accrued pension rights and related liabilities.
