The United States (US) has said Nigeria’s recently approved minimum wage of ₦70,000 for federal workers has lost value due to the free fall of the naira against the dollar.

In its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2024, released by the US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour, on August 12, the US noted that the new wage, valued at about $47.90 per month, had been weakened by the exchange rate of over ₦1,500 to $1.

The report highlighted gaps in the law, stressing that the new wage only applies to firms with 25 or more employees, leaving many workers excluded.

“The National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024 doubled the minimum wage to 70,000 naira ($47.90) per month. Despite the increase, currency devaluation meant the minimum wage was no longer higher than the poverty income level,” the report stated.

“Many employers had fewer than 25 employees, so most workers were not covered.”

The law further exempts seasonal agricultural workers, part-time staff, and commission-based employees.

The US also pointed out that enforcement remained weak, with some states refusing to implement the new law due to financial constraints.

It noted that the government rarely effectively enforced minimum wage and overtime, while penalties were low and not commensurate with other crimes such as fraud.

According to the report, between 70 and 80 per cent of Nigeria’s working population operates in the informal economy, where wage laws, hours of work, and occupational safety regulations are hardly enforced.

This leaves millions of workers vulnerable to exploitation without recourse to labour protections. Beyond wages, the US flagged persistent child rights violations, especially on early marriage.

“Federal law sets a minimum age of 18 for marriage for both boys and girls. While 35 states, all except Zamfara State, adopted the law, many states, especially northern states, did not uphold the federal minimum age. In some states, children as young as 11 could be legally married under customary or religious law,” the report stated.

It added that the federal government has been engaging religious leaders, emirs, and sultans to address the health risks linked to child marriage.

Security And Justice Sector Challenges

The report also spotlighted Nigeria’s weak justice system, citing enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, and poor due process.

Quoting Amnesty International, it said the whereabouts of “dozens of young men detained at SARS Awkuzu,” in Anambra State, remained unknown years after the controversial police unit was disbanded in 2020.

It noted that although the law requires suspects to be brought before a magistrate within 48 hours, “security forces sometimes abused this authority,” keeping individuals incommunicado for weeks or months.

“Some detainees were held in pretrial detention for periods equal or exceeding the maximum sentence for the accused crime,” the report added, blaming trial backlogs, corruption, bureaucratic inertia, and lack of resources.

Judicial Delays Deepen Injustice

The report identified shortages of judges, lack of transport for inmates, and lost case files as key drivers of delayed justice.

“Some individuals remained in detention because authorities lost their case files,” it said.

It concluded that while Nigeria had made progress on democratic reforms, systemic corruption, poverty-level wages, and weak human rights enforcement continued to erode citizens’ trust in governance.