The debate over Nigeria’s minimum wage has re-emerged as both a political and economic flashpoint, highlighting a deeper issue that continues to define the country’s socio-economic trajectory: the crisis of quality of life. At ₦70,000 per month, the equivalent of less than $44.00 at the current parallel market exchange rate, Nigeria’s national minimum wage is not just insufficient; it is a stark reminder of the growing disconnect between wage levels and the cost of living in Africa’s most populous country.
The minimum wage, by definition, is intended to provide a baseline income that allows workers to afford basic necessities, food, shelter, healthcare, transportation, and education. In Nigeria, it no longer does. The inflationary spiral, fueled by fuel subsidy removal, currency devaluation, and surging food prices, has severely eroded the real value of wages. As of 2025, food inflation stands at over 23.51 percent, down from 37.92 percent in 2024, and many households spend more than half of their income just to feed themselves. The cost of living crisis has pushed millions deeper into poverty, even as official employment figures fail to capture the extent of underemployment and informal labor.
What makes the minimum wage crisis more troubling is the absence of a robust social safety net to cushion the poor. In countries with similarly low minimum wages, governments often provide healthcare, housing, transportation subsidies, or food assistance. In Nigeria, public services are deteriorating, and Nigerians are expected to pay out of pocket for nearly everything—further compounding the burden on low-income earners.
A minimum wage of ₦70,000 per month translates to just ₦1,400 per day, barely enough to cover transport to work, let alone lunch or rent in any urban center. For a family of four, it is a mathematical impossibility to survive on such a wage without sinking into debt, dependence, or deprivation. This reality should alarm policymakers not just from a humanitarian perspective, but from a political and economic one. No society can sustain long-term stability on the foundation of growing inequality and a workforce struggling to survive.
Threats by the labour unions to negotiate a new minimum wage have been met with resistance by both federal and state governments, citing limited fiscal capacity. While government finances are indeed strained, the challenge is not just about affordability; it is about priority. Nigeria loses billions annually to revenue leakages, inefficiencies, and corruption. Reforming these leakages and increasing tax efficiency, particularly among the wealthy and large corporations, could create room for a more livable minimum wage without endangering fiscal stability.
Moreover, setting a fair minimum wage should not be the end of the conversation. It must be part of a broader agenda to improve the overall quality of life. This means investing in public education, healthcare, transportation, and housing. It means creating a business environment where SMEs can thrive and employ workers at decent wages. It also means pursuing macroeconomic stability, taming inflation, stabilising the naira, and supporting domestic production to reduce reliance on costly imports.
Some argue that increasing the minimum wage could lead to job losses, especially in the private sector. But in truth, a working population that cannot afford to consume is a drag on the economy. When workers earn more, they spend more, driving demand and stimulating local production. Productivity gains, not wage suppression, are the path to sustainable competitiveness.
A country’s minimum wage is not just a figure, it is a reflection of its values. It answers the question: what is the minimum standard of dignity we afford our workers? For Nigeria, the current wage level is a loud declaration that survival is the responsibility of the poor alone, while structural reforms and redistribution remain perpetually postponed.
The government must act with urgency, not just to adjust the minimum wage, but to overhaul the economic conditions that keep millions in poverty despite working full-time. Nigeria must redefine the social contract, affirming that a decent quality of life is not a luxury for the few, but a right for all. Anything less is not just economically short-sighted—it is morally indefensible.
