The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has expressed concern over what it described as the growing hardship faced by retirees in the oil and gas sector, blaming stagnant pension payments and weak regulatory oversight for their worsening condition.
Speaking at a one-day summit titled “The Future of Pensions in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry” held in Abuja on Thursday, PENGASSAN President Festus Osifo said many retirees under Closed Pension Fund Administrators (CPFAs) are living in economic distress, as their benefits have remained unchanged for years despite rising inflation and the naira’s continuous depreciation.
Osifo explained that although the 2004 Pension Reform Act introduced the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), several oil majors — including Chevron, NNPC, TotalEnergies, and the former Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) — were allowed to retain their pre-existing closed pension systems for employees hired before 2014, when new entrants were barred.
“We have observed with deep concern that many of our retirees are going through hardship because their pensions have remained static for years,” Osifo lamented. “Some retired as far back as 1990 or 2010, but what they take home monthly today has lost its value due to inflation and the fall of the naira. Many cannot meet their basic needs.”
According to him, about 90 per cent of CPFAs in the oil and gas industry have not reviewed pension benefits for decades, leaving retirees dependent on occasional goodwill adjustments by company management.
“In about 90 per cent of the closed pension schemes, benefits do not grow. The retirees depend solely on the goodwill of management for any form of increment,” he added.
Osifo urged the National Pension Commission (PenCom) to strengthen its regulatory oversight, particularly around actuarial assumptions such as life expectancy, funding sufficiency, and valuation transparency in closed schemes.
“PenCom must ensure that funding gaps are closed, that actuarial assessments are realistic, and that the funds are truly adequate to sustain pensioners and those still in service,” he said.
The PENGASSAN leader stressed that retirees’ welfare should be treated as a moral responsibility and a measure of corporate integrity, vowing that the union would intensify engagement with employers to address the imbalance.
“Those who are pensioners today were once union veterans who fought for workers’ rights. It is our duty to ensure they live in dignity — tomorrow, we too will become pensioners,” Osifo said.
He also commended PenCom for maintaining professionalism and transparency in a challenging economic environment but urged the commission to remain incorruptible and uphold its integrity “so that Nigeria does not happen to the institution.”
Representing PenCom Director-General Aisha Dahir-Umar, the Head of Investment Supervision Department, Mr. Abdulqadir Dalhatu, reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to protecting contributors’ funds and improving pension adequacy in the oil and gas industry.
Dalhatu said PenCom had introduced new compliance frameworks and supervisory mechanisms to enhance transparency and governance among CPFAs.
“Our goal is to maintain public confidence in the pension system while driving innovation and sustainability. We are continuously reviewing investment guidelines to align with global best practices and ensure retirees’ purchasing power is better protected,” he said.
He added that the commission remains open to collaboration with organized labour and employers to strengthen the pension system’s resilience against inflation and exchange rate volatility.
In a keynote presentation, TotalEnergies CPFA Managing Director, Mr. Benjamin Okeke-Agedi, represented by Chief Finance Officer Wale Olasoji, highlighted CPFAs’ strategic advantages, citing their flexibility and global investment reach.
Olasoji urged CPFAs to leverage technology, data analytics, and sustainable investment models to boost transparency and long-term performance.
“Adopting artificial intelligence for risk analysis and integrating ESG principles into investment portfolios will position CPFAs for relevance in the global financial ecosystem,” he said.
He also noted that pension funds could play a vital role in Nigeria’s energy transition by investing in green housing and infrastructure.
Closed Pension Fund Administrators were established by large corporations before the Pension Reform Act of 2004. Unlike the contributory system, they operate defined benefit schemes in which employers bear full responsibility for funding retirees’ benefits.
PENGASSAN warned that without periodic reviews, most CPFAs risk becoming unsustainable due to inflation, rising life expectancy, and weak funding discipline.
According to PenCom, Nigeria’s pension sector currently manages over ₦20 trillion in assets, but concerns persist over inequality in benefit adequacy, particularly for retirees under closed pension schemes in the oil and gas sector.
