The Nigerian government, through the National Pension Commission, has approved a 1,173 percent increment for Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) retirees after nearly 21 years of protest.

PenCom disclosed in a statement on Wednesday that the 2,116 NSITF retirees will get a monthly pension of N159.95 million, up from N12.56 million.

Similarly, the retirees would get additional N8.70 billion in pension arrears.

The Commission said the move approved by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Director General Ms. Omolola Oloworaran showed the government’s commitment to retirees’ welfare.

The pension approval would see the NSITF retirees smile home with over N206 monthly pension up from N18,000 and at least N3 million in pension arrears per retiree.

“This marks the first pension increase for NSITF retirees in 21 years, addressing long-standing disparities and restoring the value of benefits in line with statutory provisions and prevailing economic conditions.

“Additionally, as part of the enhancement, the 2,116 NSITF retirees have received N8.70 billion in pension arrears.

“The average arrears payment amounted to about N3 million per retiree.

“In a particular instance, an NSITF retiree’s monthly pension was enhanced from about N18,000 to a whopping N206,000. In addition, the retiree was paid over N8 million as pension arrears,” the commission stated.