24th May, 2024
By Mary Joseph
The Lagos State Government on Friday disclosed that it paid the sum of N16,631,759,666.02 to 5,886 retirees as pension in the last one year.
Commissioner for Establishments and Training, Afolabi Ayantayo revealed this at a ministerial news conference in Alausa, Ikeja.
He said the money was paid to the retirees through the Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC) under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
Ayantayo disclosed that since May 2019, a total of N63,702,967,870.37 has been paid to 19,814 retirees across various sectors like the mainstream service, local government, and parastatals.
“Governor 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,” he said.
The commissioner added that in February 2024, the sum of N3.1 billion was paid to 1,013 retirees, while in March 2024, the sum of N4 billion was paid to 1,455 retirees, adding that in May 2024, N4.5 billion was approved as part of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s promise to “systematically eliminate the backlogs”.
On pension increment, Ayantayo said following a federal directive, Lagos State implemented a pension review for pensioners under the Defined Benefit Scheme in January 2024.
He said this 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 prioritizing 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.