CSA Director General Josiah Joekai says eligible retirees will receive monthly pensions and a one-time government retirement payment; deadline extended to November 30 for those not yet captured
MONROVIA – Liberia has identified 2,718 civil servants scheduled to retire at the end of 2026, following a nationwide data-collection and pre-retirement counseling exercise conducted by the Civil Service Agency (CSA) in collaboration with the National Social Security and Welfare Corporation (NASSCORP).
By: Gegee Brima – alhajigegeebrima@gmail.com
CSA Director General Dr. Josiah F. Joekai disclosed the figures Tuesday at the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, where he presented the results of the nationwide exercise covering all 15 counties and 67 government spending entities.
According to Joekai, the exercise captured a total of 2,835 individuals, including 117 former civil servants who retired in previous years but are still awaiting their pension benefits.
He explained that the 2,718 employees identified for the 2026 retirement group are expected to leave public service effective December 31, 2026, and begin receiving monthly pension benefits in January 2027, subject to verification and enrollment requirements by NASSCORP.
The nationwide exercise, which concluded on October 17, was intended to identify employees eligible for retirement, verify their employment and personal records, provide pre-retirement counseling, facilitate pension enrollment and identify outstanding cases requiring administrative attention.
Breaking down the figures, Joekai said 2,125 of the employees scheduled to retire are men, representing 78.2 percent, while 593 are women, accounting for 21.8 percent.
The Ministry of Education accounts for the largest number of employees scheduled to retire, with 1,493, followed by the Ministry of Health with 300 and the Ministry of Local Government with 297. Together, the three ministries represent 76.9 percent of the total retirement group.
On the outstanding pension cases, Joekai disclosed that the 117 individuals retired between 2020 and 2024 but have yet to receive their monthly benefits.
He said the cases involve 92 men and 25 women across 19 government institutions, with the Ministry of Education accounting for 42 cases, the Ministry of Local Government 33 and the Ministry of Health 19.
The CSA Director General said the agency has begun compiling and forwarding the necessary documentation to NASSCORP for verification and processing.
To demonstrate the impact of the collaboration between the two institutions, Joekai referenced a 2024 retirement exercise that identified 294 former civil servants who had retired between 2018 and 2023 without receiving pension benefits.
He said all 294 cases were subsequently processed, and the beneficiaries are now receiving their monthly pensions.
Meanwhile, Joekai announced that eligible retirees will receive a one-time government retirement payment, commonly referred to as a retirement handshake, in addition to their regular monthly pension benefits. However, he did not disclose the amount of the payment.
In a move to accommodate employees who missed the initial nationwide exercise, the CSA has extended the retirement data-capture and documentation period until November 30.
Joekai said civil servants captured during the extended period are expected to begin receiving their monthly pensions in February 2027, with their January entitlement paid retroactively, subject to NASSCORP’s verification and enrollment procedures.
He therefore urged eligible employees who have not been captured to submit their documents before the deadline, while calling on human resource officers across government institutions to assist affected workers in completing the process.
Joekai further said the government, since President Joseph Nyuma Boakai assumed office in January 2024, has taken steps to address longstanding challenges involving delayed retirement processing, incomplete personnel records and the slow settlement of pension cases.
He explained that the reforms are intended to identify and counsel employees ahead of retirement, strengthen coordination between government institutions and improve workforce planning.
“Retirement should be a period of dignity and reasonable financial security,” Joekai said, assuring that the CSA will continue working with NASSCORP and relevant government entities to improve record-keeping and resolve outstanding pension cases.
He also emphasized the need for government institutions with large numbers of retiring employees to establish succession plans to preserve institutional knowledge and ensure the uninterrupted delivery of public services.
The CSA Director General described the latest exercise as an important step toward establishing a more predictable retirement system, while emphasizing that the commencement of pension payments remains dependent on NASSCORP’s verification and enrollment processes.
