The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) has attributed the delay in the payment of February 2026 salaries for staff of the Federal Ministry of Steel Development and four federal agencies to shortfalls in personnel cost allocations.
In a statement issued on Monday, Mr. Bawa Mokwa, Director of Press and Public Relations at the OAGF, said the affected organisations recorded funding gaps in their salary budgets for the month.
Mokwa said the delay affected the Federal Ministry of Steel Development, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), the National Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Kamuku National Park, and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN).
“The delay was caused by salary shortfalls recorded in the personnel cost allocations of the affected MDAs,” the statement read.
The OAGF said the clarification followed concerns raised by civil servants over the non-payment of February 2026 salaries in some federal organisations.
According to the office, the affected ministries, departments, and agencies have been advised to liaise with the Cash Management Office of the Federal Ministry of Finance to address the funding gaps responsible for the delay.
“The Office of the Accountant-General has communicated with the affected MDAs to liaise with the Cash Management Office of the Federal Ministry of Finance to resolve the issue of the salary shortfalls,” Mokwa said.
The office stressed that the delay was limited to the listed organisations, noting that salaries for other federal workers had already been paid.
“The delay in salary payment for the affected organisations was strictly due to these shortfalls, confirming that salaries for other federal workers had already been paid,” the statement added.
The OAGF also addressed complaints from civil servants whose salary accounts are domiciled with Standard Chartered Bank.
According to the office, the workers were unable to access their salaries because of a bank policy requiring a minimum opening balance of ₦7 million.
“Civil servants whose salary accounts are domiciled with Standard Chartered Bank were unable to access their salaries due to the bank’s policy requiring a minimum opening balance of seven million naira. However, the salaries of the affected workers had been paid to the bank,” the statement said.
The OAGF assured workers affected by the delays that efforts were ongoing to resolve the issues and ensure that outstanding salaries are paid promptly.
In the proposed 2026 Federal Government budget, personnel costs for ministries, departments, and agencies are projected at about ₦8.36 trillion, with additional allocations for pensions and gratuities pushing total staff-related spending higher.
