President Bola Tinubu has approved measures aimed at improving the welfare of pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS).

The head of corporate communications at the Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Olugbenga Ajayi, said the development marked a significant milestone in Nigeria's pension reform efforts.

Ajayi said PTAD had settled arrears related to the first pension increment of 20% to 28%, which came into effect in January 2024, according to CHANNELS TV.

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The approvals, which align with the president's Renewed Hope Agenda, contain the immediate implementation of an extra budgetary allocation to enforce new pension rates for DBS pensioners.

The president also endorsed the adoption of a proposed pension harmonisation policy which will be incorporated into the 2026 pension budget. Additionally, health insurance coverage for all DBS pensioners has been approved, ensuring access to essential healthcare services.

The President's directive included unpaid liabilities owed to NITEL/MTEL pensioners and other retirees from defunct parastatals in the 2026 budget proposal.

These approvals follow a formal request submitted by Odunaiya, who had urged the Presidency to authorise emergency budgetary allocations to implement critical pension reforms.

The proposed reforms include a new pension rate of N32,000 and incremental increases of 10.66% and 12.95% for pensioners from defunct and privatised agencies. Other components of the reform package include harmonisation of pension rates across all DBS pensioners and their enrolment into the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).