The Ogun State Government has officially cleared a long-standing eight-year backlog of pension and gratuity arrears for workers who retired between 2012 and 2020. This milestone, announced during a media parley on Tuesday, marks a total disbursement of over ₦188 billion to retirees since 2019.
The Commissioner for Finance and Chief Economic Adviser, Dapo Okubadejo, confirmed that the payments address debts inherited under the old Defined Benefits Scheme (DBS). He emphasised that the administration of Governor Dapo Abiodun has maintained a record of zero monthly pension defaults since its inception, synchronising retiree payments with active worker salaries.
"The Governor has approved the introduction of the Additional Pension Benefit in line with existing laws," Okubadejo stated. He described the new Additional Pension Benefit (APB) as a "first of its kind" in Nigeria, designed to compensate retirees for historical delays in pension remittances that denied them investment returns.
Official records show state gratuity payments for the 2012–2020 window reached ₦23.3 billion, while ₦32.8 billion was allocated to local government retirees. The state's pension budget has surged from ₦6.7 billion in 2019 to ₦20 billion in 2025, with projections indicating a rise to ₦40 billion by 2029.
This fiscal intervention is supported by a significant expansion in the state's economy. The Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Olaolu Olabimtan, noted that Ogun’s GDP grew from ₦3.5 trillion in 2019 to ₦18.96 trillion in 2026. Simultaneously, Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) rose from ₦50 billion to ₦240 billion over the same period.
While the government transitions to the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), it has introduced a six-month palliative payment for July 2025 retirees to bridge the gap during documentation.