By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
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, 9 March, 2026 by the Director of Press and Public Relations at the OAGF, Bawa Mokwa.
The Office explained that the affected organisations experienced funding gaps in their salary budgets for the month, resulting in the delay.
According to the statement, the organisations affected include the Federal Ministry of Steel Development, the Nigerian Export Promotion Council, the National Rural Electrification Agency, Kamuku National Park, and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria.
“The delay was caused by salary shortfalls recorded in the personnel cost allocations of the affected MDAs,” the statement read.
The OAGF noted that the clarification followed concerns raised by civil servants over the non-payment of February 2026 salaries in some federal organisations.
Furthermore, the office disclosed that the affected ministries, departments, and agencies had been directed to engage 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,” the statement added.
The office also stressed that the delay was limited to the listed organisations, confirming 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,” it stated.
Meanwhile, the OAGF addressed complaints from civil servants whose salary accounts are domiciled with Standard Chartered Bank, explaining that the workers were unable to access their salaries due to the bank’s policy requiring a minimum opening balance of ₦7 million.
According to the office, although the salaries had been credited to the bank, the affected workers could not access the funds because of the account requirement.
“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, however, assured the affected workers that efforts were ongoing to resolve the issues and ensure prompt payment of the outstanding salaries.
