Repeated minimum wage increases without structural reforms will do little to ease hardship for most Nigerians, two experts have warned.
Gesiye Salo Angaye and Preye Angaye, in a detailed analysis, said the N70,000 national minimum wage signed into law by President Bola Tinubu in July 2024 had been largely eroded by inflation and rising living costs.
They noted that the review followed the removal of petrol subsidy and the floating of the naira, which pushed inflation above 34 per cent and food inflation to nearly 40 per cent by December 2024. The development, they said, triggered a wage-price spiral as landlords, transporters, school owners and traders raised prices, wiping out gains for public servants.
“A pay rise that isn’t matched by more goods and services on the shelves rarely stays a pay rise for long. It becomes a price rise instead,” they stated.
The scholars pointed out that the law covers only a small fraction of workers. National Bureau of Statistics data show about 93 per cent of employed Nigerians are in the informal sector as traders, artisans, farmers and small business owners who get no direct benefit from the new wage but bear the full impact of higher costs.
They also flagged wide revenue gaps among states. Lagos generated over N815bn in internally generated revenue in 2023, while Taraba, Yobe and Kebbi raised just N11bn to N12bn each. The disparity has caused uneven implementation, with several states struggling to pay and some defaulting on salaries of local government workers and teachers.
The experts faulted the one-size-fits-all approach and proposed a flexible framework that sets a realistic national floor, allows states to phase in payments based on revenue, and drives stronger IGR.
Beyond wages, they called for productivity-linked pay, heavy investment in education, healthcare and skills, plus urgent upgrades in infrastructure, agriculture and support for MSMEs.
They urged prudent fiscal management to stop recurrent spending from crowding out capital projects, progressive taxation, and policies tied to measurable gains in education, health, security and housing.
“Nigeria stands at an important moment,” they said. “The time has come to redefine the relationship between government and the people through a new social contract built on productive employment, efficient institutions and enhanced quality of life.”
Higher wages, they concluded, should flow from a stronger, more productive economy — not from repeated emergency responses to inflation.
