The Federal Government of Nigeria has organised six zonal public hearings across the country for the review of the National Minimum Wage.
The hearings are scheduled to hold in the North-East (Yola), North-West (Kano), North-Central (Abuja), South-South (Uyo), South-East (Enugu), and South-West (Lagos).
The South-West Zonal Public Hearing, which will be chaired by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Wale Edun, will be held on 7th March 2024.
A statement by the Finance Ministry’s Head Press and Public Relations Unit, Helen Oby Chukwu, indicates that the Lagos session aims to gather insights and recommendations to inform a fair and sustainable minimum wage policy, reflecting the engagement and contributions from various stakeholders in the region.
According to her, other members of the panel to be chaired by Edun are Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, who is representing state government interests; Grace Omo-Lamai from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN); the Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprises’ (NASMEs’) representative, Muhammed Nura.
Representatives of the organised labour at the forum include, Adewale Adeyanju of the NLC, Afusatu Shuaibu of the TUC), as well as Minister of State, Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha.
Chukwu, who stated that the event marked a step in ensuring a fair, sustainable national minimum wage, and reflective of the nation’s current realities and aspirations, advised stakeholders to contribute during the panel discussions to shaping a policy that balances the well-being of workers based on the economic realities of the country.
