Lagos Pays N16.6bn Pension Benefits To 5,886 Retirees

Lagos State government yesterday revealed that it has disbursed a total of N16.6 billion to another set of 5,886 retirees as pension benefits in the last one year.

Commissioner for Establishments and Training, Afolabi Ayantayo disclosed this at a ministerial press conference in Alausa, Ikeja, saying the money was paid to the retirees through the Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).

Ayantayo added that since May 2019, a total of N63.7 billion has been paid to 19,814 retirees across various sectors like the mainstream service, local government and parastatals.

He said, “Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has made significant progress in tackling backlogs. From February 2023 to April 2024, his administration paid N16,631,759,666.02 to 5,886 retirees.”

Ayantayo explained that in February 2024, N3.1 billion was paid to 1,013 retirees, while in March 2024, N4 billion was paid to 1,455 retirees, adding that in May 2024, N4.5 billion was approved as part of Governor Sanwo-Olu’s promise to “systematically eliminate the backlogs.”

Harping on pension increment, he said the state government in line with the federal government’s directive implemented a pension review for pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme in January 2024, adding that the review involved applying various percentage increases based on individual pension amounts.

“Governor Sanwo-Olu approved N109,913,751.48 for this adjustment to benefit pensioners from civil service, teaching service, and local government,” he said.

The commissioner also disclosed that with the introduction of the groundbreaking Learning Management System (LMS) in 2020, the state government has been able to train over 60,000 officers in a year.

He said overall, the accelerated capacity-building programme resulted in a significant increase in the number of officers trained and retrained during the period.

“By prioritising human capital development, the state government has demonstrated its commitment to building a skilled, knowledgeable, and high-performing workforce capable of driving positive change and delivering effective service to the citizenry,” he explained.