04:05 AFRICA
Niger’s near-40% increase in its statutory minimum wage, raising the SMIG to CFA 42,000 per month as of October 2025, and Sierra Leone’s move from NLe 800 to NLe 1,200 per month are indicative of floors that had fallen dramatically out of touch with daily realities. Namibia’s introduction of a national minimum wage of
N$18.00 per hour from January 2025 also reflects a structural decision to legislate the protection that a set minimum wage provides. Legislative Overhauls In other instances, minimum wage revisions form part of a broader legislative moment. Egypt is a good example: its recent minimum
wage changes were part of a wider reform of the country’s labour law framework. Tanzania similarly revised private sectors simultaneously, effective January 2026, demonstrating the scale and ambition that some governments are bringing to labour reform. sector minimum wages across 16
The scale of change across the continent Estimated Minium Wage Increases Across Sampled African Countries Lesotho 5% South Africa 5.4% Mauritius 6% Tunisia 7% Seychelles 7% Cabo Verde 8% Ghana 10% Morocco 10% Namibia 12% Tanzania 15% DRC 20% Algeria 20% Egypt 30% Niger 40% Sierra Leone
West Africa North Africa Southern Africa Central/East Africa Indian Ocean
50%
0
10
20
30
40
50
Estimated Minimum Wage Increase (%)
Figure 1: Estimated minimum wage increases (%) across a sample of African countries, based on announced changes. Note: figures represent approximations where exact prior rates were not officially published.
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GLOBAL PAYROLL MAGAZINE ISSUE 21
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