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May Day: FG announces salary increase for Civil Servants, includes Lectures and Doctors in the plan
The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced that it will soon increase the salaries of all civil servants, including lecturers and doctors.
Workers under the Consolidated University Academic Salary Structure, Consolidated Medical Salary Scale (CONMESS), CONHESS, and CONTISS salary scales are set to benefit from the increase.
Nigeria's Minister of Labour, Employment and Productivity, Chris Ngige, disclosed this during the celebration of International Workers' Day at Eagle Square, Abuja.
Ngige revealed that in addition to the salary increase, workers would receive arrears of the increase from January 2023. The National Salaries, Wages, and Income Commission is working towards finalising the increase.
According to Ngige, “It will also be recalled that since the emergence of the Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure on the 1st of January, 2007, it has not been reviewed by any of the past administrations, but for the consequential minimum wage adjustment of 2019 for all wage structures under this government in 2019.”
The Minister explained that the Federal Government had worked out the introduction of a 40% Peculiar Allowance into the remuneration and emoluments of core Federal Civil Servants and other public servants on the CONPSS.
This was done to help cushion the effects of inflation and other costs of doing their work since they are not on any special allowances. Ngige stated that this demonstrated the government's commitment to improving workers' welfare and conditions of service without any industrial action but as a fallout of social dialogue.
However, other workers in different wage structures like CONHESS, CONMESS, CONUAS, and CONTISS that began their Collective Bargaining with their employer, even with Industrial action, are winding up their CBAs for the National Salaries Incomes and Wages to transmit the same for final treatment as provisions were made in the 2023 Appropriations for them with effect from 1st January 2023.
Labour day: Buhari regime paid N10,000 stipend to 1.6m poor households every two months
On Monday, it was announced by the Minister of Labour, Employment and Productivity, Dr Chris Ngige, that President Muhammadu Buhari's regime has provided financial aid to 1.6 million impoverished households.
These households receive a bimonthly stipend of N10,000, which is part of the regime's initiative to alleviate suffering among citizens. The announcement was made during the International Workers' Day celebrations at Eagle Square in Abuja.
Ngige went on to highlight the National Social Investment Programme, which was launched by President Buhari in 2016. It is currently the largest of its kind in Africa and one of the largest globally.
The National Social Register of Poor and Vulnerable Nigerians has identified over seven million households, comprising 32.6 million individuals, across 708 local government areas, 8,723 wards, and 86,610 communities in the 36 states of Nigeria and the FCT. Currently, the Conditional Cash Transfer programme is benefiting 1.6 million of these households, totaling more than eight million individuals in 45,744 communities across 5,483 wards of 557 LGs in 35 states and the FCT.
Ngige further explained that the regime is committed to improving the living conditions of Nigerians. To this end, the Family Homes Fund Limited, which was incorporated by the Federal Government of Nigeria in September 2016, is the implementing agency for the Buhari regime's National Social Housing scheme. More than 2,000 hectares of land with titled documents have been given by 24 states for this purpose, which can accommodate approximately 65,000 new homes.
Under the National Social Housing programme, Nigerians will be given at least 15 years with a monthly payment at a six per cent interest rate to pay for each housing unit. The Central Bank of Nigeria provides an N200bn financing facility, guaranteed by the FG. States such as Enugu, Nassarawa Delta, and Kano have already benefitted their workers from this scheme. The Buhari regime is committed to ensuring that all Nigerians can have access to affordable housing and is making significant strides towards achieving this goal.
