Nigeria’s minimum wage has never protected workers from poverty: here’s why

Nigeria’s minimum wage has never protected workers from poverty: here’s why

By Stephen Onyeiwu, Allegheny College Wages have become the top issue for Nigeria’s organised labour movements in the past year. Reacting to recent increases in the cost of living, the labour movement has been calling for an upward review of the national minimum wage, currently N30,000 (US$24) a month. The Conversation’s Adejuwon Soyinka asks economics professor Stephen Onyeiwu if Nigeria’s minimum wage truly protects workers from poverty. […]

May 6, 2024 27

Business / Economics

24 April Morning Biz News: Namibia’s Exchange Control Policies Pose Challenges to Oil and Gas Sector Expansion

The Brief reports that Higino Mutemba, Head of Oilfield Services at RMB, has raised concerns about Namibia's stringent exchange control policies potentially hindering the country's ambitious plans for its burgeoning oil and gas sector. Despite Namibia's efforts to regulate foreign currency flows, Mutemba warns that these policies could deter international investors, drawing attention to the difficulties encountered in repatriating funds from other African nations. Namibia has been actively seeking to […]

April 24, 2024 37

Namibia

Unchanged repo rate still a challenge for many civil servants’ cost of living

The government has disclosed that the wage bill for the upcoming financial year amounts to N$35.4 billion, encompassing benefits and a 5% raise for civil servants, as outlined in its 2024/25 budget. The allocation is intended to cover the salaries of 107,000 civil servants. Dr. Basilius Kasera, a Professor in Human Sciences at UNAm, provides insights on the matter.

April 19, 2024 66

Business / Economics

Bank of Namibia holds repo rate at 7.75%

The Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Namibia has decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 7.75 percent, with the prime lending rate holding steady at 11.50 percent. This is the second monetary policy announcement by BoN this year. Governor of the Bank Johannes !Gawaxab. Governor !Gawaxab highlighted that risks to the domestic economic outlook have remained broadly unchanged since the previous MPC meeting, although the conflict in […]

April 17, 2024 33

Africa

Kenya’s shilling is gaining value, but don’t expect it to last – expert

By Odongo Kodongo, University of the Witwatersrand Shortly after Kenya’s 2022 elections, the shilling depreciated rapidly against the US dollar – the country’s main currency for international transactions – fuelling a wave of political discontent. More than a year later, the Central Bank of Kenya, taking its cue from the International Monetary Fund, said that the run on the shilling was a market correction for a […]

April 17, 2024 11

Africa

Zimbabwe’s emerging consumer market tops segment – report

By Conrad Onyango, bird story agency Zimbabwe is pushing past sky-high inflation, global sanctions and illicit trade to find itself the unlikely winner in a consumer index that measures Africa’s emerging consumer market. Efforts by the government to offer "essential consumer spending solutions through credit and digital advancements" - including the recent launch of Zim-gold, a new “structured currency” backed by gold - are helping to lower […]

April 15, 2024 21

Local

Governor! Gawaxab champions economic resilience and financial innovation at 2024 Cirrus investor conference

The Bank of Namibia, participated in the 5th edition of the Cirrus Investor Conference. Taking place in Swakopmund between 9-10 April 2024, the conference drew development finance institutions, institutional asset managers, listed companies, state-owned enterprises, and Government Ministries, offices and agencies together to connect Namibian securities issuers and potential issuers, with investors from around the world. Speaking at the event, the Governor of the Bank, Mr. Johannes !Gawaxab provided […]

April 10, 2024 9

Africa

Twin rate cuts set Mozambique apart as African currency rally

By Seth Onyango, bird story agency Mozambique’s central bank has decisively cut its benchmark lending rate to 15.75% from 16.5%, setting a precedent as the first African country to slash rates twice in 2024. The move highlights Maputo’s aggressive push for economic growth amid a wider trend of cooling inflation and currency stability against the US dollar across Africa. Rate cuts in the southeastern African nation, prompted […]

April 8, 2024 35

Africa

Cost of living relief on the cards as Kenya, Nigeria currencies gain ground

By Conrad Onyango, bird story agency Squeezed by painfully high prices for over a year, households in Kenya and Nigeria are beginning to get some relief as their national currencies strengthen against the US dollar and the cost of living starts to come down. In 2023, the shilling and naira were ranked among the worst-performing currencies in the world, according to data from Bloomberg and World Currency […]

April 2, 2024 18