Post a comment 
The Minister of Employment, Labour and Social Security, Mr. Mohamed Rahman Swaray, has announced an increase in Sierra Leone’s national minimum wage from NLe 800 to NLe 1,200, effective April 2026.
Minister Swaray made the announcement during the three-day Salone Civic Festival, organized by the Ministry of Information and Civic Education on 12 December 2025.
Responding to public concerns about the adequacy of the current minimum wage, the Minister noted that His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio was the first to acknowledge that the existing wage no longer aligns with prevailing economic realities. Acting on the President’s directive, the Ministry engaged employers and social partners nationwide to review and renegotiate the wage structure.
“I am pleased to announce that after months of consultations and negotiations with employers across the country, we have agreed to increase the minimum wage to NLe 1,200 effective April 2026. While this may not fully meet expectations, it will help cushion the economic challenges faced by many citizens,” Minister Swaray stated.
Beyond the wage increase, the Minister outlined the government’s broader strategy to expand social protection through the National Social Security and Insurance Trust (NASSIT). He clarified that NASSIT currently covers only the formal sector, which represents about 9 percent of Sierra Leone’s total population, leaving the vast majority of citizens, particularly those in the informal economy, without structured social security coverage.
Minister Swaray explained that the informal sector, which accounts for nearly 70 percent of the population, includes traders, bike riders, tailors, fishermen, market women, and other self-employed workers who are presently outside the NASSIT framework. He emphasized that government policy now seeks to bridge this gap by extending social protection to this underserved majority.
“This vision is directly aligned with the priorities of President Bio,” the Minister said. “We have done the heavy lifting, and the Law Officers’ Department has completed the first draft of the proposed legal framework, which will be presented to Parliament in the first quarter of 2026.”
He stressed that integrating informal sector workers into the NASSIT scheme is critical to protecting them from economic shocks and long-term vulnerability, noting that they remain the driving force of national productivity and economic resilience.
“The scheme is designed to eliminate uncertainty about their future. At retirement or in times of illness, they will have something reliable to fall back on. Their contributions today will become the lifeline of their survival tomorrow,” Minister Swaray affirmed.
Once registered under the expanded NASSIT framework, informal sector workers will be entitled to retirement pensions, survivors’ benefits, and other social protection schemes currently enjoyed by formal sector employees, ensuring that traders, fishermen, and artisans can retire with dignity and financial security.
The announced minimum wage increase, coupled with plans to expand NASSIT beyond its current 9 percent population coverage, signals a decisive shift toward inclusive social protection in Sierra Leone. By addressing immediate income challenges while laying the groundwork for long-term security for informal sector workers, the government is advancing a people-centered labour agenda that leaves no worker behind.
