Nigeria passes minimum wage bill

ABUJA

Nigeria's national assembly on July 23 passed a bill to more than double the minimum wage for federal workers, with the authorities warning against protests over soaring living costs.

The monthly minimum wage is set to rise from 30,000 to 70,000 naira (around $43) once President Bola Ahmed Tinubu gives his assent to the bill, which passed rapidly through the Senate and House of Representatives.

Lawmakers also reduced the review period for the wage from five years to three years.

Passing the bill was "important to the Nigerian people," said Senate president Godswill Akpabio from Tinubu's APC party.

Africa's most populous nation has seen a series of labor strikes in recent months as unions pushed for an increase in the wage.

The cost of living spiked after Tinubu ended a costly fuel subsidy and eased foreign exchange controls following his inauguration in May last year.

Inflation hit record levels at 34.19 percent in June, with food inflation more than 40.87 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

Unions agreed to the increase after a deadlock and months of negotiations, even though the hike was far less than they had demanded.

The new wage level applies to federal workers, from civil servants to airport staff and teachers.

The passage of the bill comes as calls have appeared online for Nigerians to join nationwide protests against Tinubu's policies, with some urging peaceful rallies from Aug. 1 to "End Bad Governance in Nigeria."

But Information Minister Mohammed Idris said the president had asked demonstrators to hold off.