The Federal Government has explained why some civil servants in the Federal Ministry of Steel Development and four federal agencies have not received their February 2026 salaries.

The explanation came from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), which said the delay was caused by shortfalls in the personnel cost allocations of the affected ministries and agencies.

Director of Press and Public Relations at the office, Bawa Mokwa, made the clarification in a statement issued on Monday in Abuja while responding to concerns raised by civil servants over the non-payment of their February salaries.

According to Mokwa, the delay only affected a few government institutions where the funds allocated for staff salaries were not enough to cover the required payments.

He said the affected organisations include the Federal Ministry of Steel Development, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), National Rural Electrification Agency, Kamuku National Park and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria.

The OAGF said the issue arose because the personnel cost allocations for these institutions recorded shortfalls during the salary processing for February.

Mokwa said the Office of the Accountant-General has already directed the affected ministries and agencies to work with the Cash Management Office of the Federal Ministry of Finance in order to resolve the funding gap and ensure that the outstanding salaries are paid.

“The delay in salary payment for the affected organisations was strictly due to the shortfalls recorded in their personnel cost allocations,” the statement said.

The office also explained that the problem does not affect other federal workers, adding that salaries for employees in other ministries, departments and agencies had already been paid.

In addition to the issue of funding shortfalls, the OAGF also addressed concerns raised by some civil servants whose salary accounts are domiciled with Standard Chartered Bank.

According to the statement, some of the workers were unable to access their salaries because of the bank’s policy which requires a minimum opening balance of seven million naira.

The office explained that the salaries of the affected workers had already been credited to the bank, but the staff members could not withdraw the money because of the bank’s account requirements.

“The salaries of the affected staff have already been paid to the bank, but the workers were unable to access the funds due to the bank’s policy requiring a minimum opening balance of seven million naira,” the statement said.

The Office of the Accountant-General assured workers affected by the delay that efforts are ongoing to resolve the issues.

It added that the relevant authorities are working with the affected institutions to address the shortfalls and ensure that all outstanding salaries are paid as quickly as possible.

The office also appealed to workers in the affected organisations to remain patient while steps are being taken to correct the problem. (The Nation)

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