The National Pension Commission, PenCom, has authorized the disbursement of N14.2 billion to 8,651 Nigerians who faced temporary job loss in the first quarter of 2024.
This significant financial support, averaging around N1.64 million per person, is aimed at alleviating the financial challenges caused by unemployment.
PenCom’s First-Quarter 2024 Report reveals that 8,702 Retirement Savings Account (RSA) holders requested access to 25% of their RSA balances due to temporary unemployment.
Of these requests, 8,651 were approved, while 51 were denied because the applicants were over 50 years old. The approved applicants included 8,167 individuals from the private sector and 484 from the public sector.
Since its inception until March 2024, PenCom has approved a total of N238.19 billion for 501,807 requests, reflecting a 6.34% increase from N223.99 billion recorded in December 2023.
This high approval rate of approximately 97% underscores PenCom’s critical role in providing financial assistance to many Nigerians during periods of unemployment, highlighting the growing economic pressures faced by individuals across the country.
