The federal government has paid N18 billion in outstanding severance benefits to 2,700 former workers of the defunct Nigeria Airways, more than two decades after the national carrier was liquidated.
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed the settlement at a briefing in Abuja on Friday, following a directive by President Bola Tinubu. He said 2,100 former workers in batches one to seven had already received their payments, while the remaining 600 beneficiaries in batches eight and nine had been cleared for disbursement within days.
Oyedele described the payment as a matter of dignity and government responsibility rather than a favour to the workers, noting that many had waited more than 20 years, with some dying before receiving their entitlements.
More than 6,000 workers were left without their full pensions and gratuities when Nigeria Airways ceased operations in 2003 amid mismanagement and mounting debt. Former staff spent years protesting and petitioning successive administrations for payment, at one point putting their outstanding claim at roughly N36 billion. Previous governments made partial payments, including N22 billion approved in 2018, but a significant balance remained unresolved for years.
Oyedele said the government is still verifying additional claims from former staff and assured that all outstanding entitlements would be fully settled. The ministry described the payment as part of a broader effort to clear long-standing government obligations.
