The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and twenty-seven states have yet to establish committees to implement the recently approved ₦70,000 minimum wage. This follows President Bola Tinubu’s recent signing of the new wage law.
EKO HOT BLOG reports that despite the swift passage of the bill by the National Assembly and the President’s endorsement, several states have yet to take steps toward its implementation.
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According to Punch, these states include Plateau, Kebbi, Sokoto, Nasarawa, Bayelsa, Delta, Osun, Ekiti, Zamfara, Benue, Enugu, Taraba, Gombe, Kogi, Adamawa, Niger, Anambra, Imo, Ebonyi, Oyo, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Katsina, Kaduna, Cross River, and Yobe.
Conversely, seven states — Kano, Kwara, Ogun, Borno, Jigawa, Ondo, and Abia — have established implementation committees. Only Lagos and Edo claim to have already begun paying the new minimum wage.
Lagos State’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, told Punch on Saturday that the state had been paying more than the minimum wage even before the law was enacted.
He stated, “Lagos has been paying more than ₦70,000 as the minimum wage, so we have no issues complying with the new requirement.”
Similarly, the Edo State Government confirmed it had started paying the new wage.
On August 1, 2024, Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, who also serves as Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum, established an 18-member tripartite committee to devise the modalities for the new wage implementation.
The committee, which includes representatives from the state government, labour unions, and the Organised Private Sector, has already begun its work.
Governor Abba Yusuf of Kano set up an advisory committee on the new wage, while Jigawa State formed a 10-member minimum wage committee on August 8.
Borno State recently inaugurated a 22-member panel, and Ondo State announced that its committee was diligently working to ensure the wage’s implementation.
Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Dotun Oyelade, noted that the state had formed a committee months ago to advise on the wage’s implementation, comprising labour stakeholders and government officials.
Abia State Governor Alex Otti mentioned that the state had already set up a committee before the Federal Government’s official signing of the bill. “We are making provisions for the salary increase in line with the new minimum wage,” he said.
However, Gombe State Governor and Chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, Inuwa Yahaya, expressed concerns about the state’s ability to meet the new wage due to limited financial resources.
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During a meeting with stakeholders on the nationwide protest ‘#EndBadGovernance,’ Yahaya stated, “I cannot pay the ₦70,000 minimum wage, and I suspect many other states are in the same predicament.”
Similarly, Kogi State’s Commissioner for Finance, Ashiwaju Ashiru Idris, noted that no date had been set for the state’s implementation of the new wage.
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