By Suleiman Yakubu

Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, has announced a new minimum wage of N80,000 for both state and local government workers. The governor made this disclosure on Friday, shortly after meeting with officials of the organized labour at the Government House in Minna.
He stated that the implementation would commence in November 2024, with a committee on the minimum wage working on the consequential adjustments. The governor further mentioned that the state could afford to pay the new wage due to his administration's sustained gains in agriculture and other investments expected to generate revenue in the near future.
Governor Bago also reiterated his call for civil servants to embrace agriculture, noting that farms for civil servants would be created to enhance their productivity.
Niger State Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Idris Abdulkarim Lafene, expressed happiness with the governor's approval of the N80,000 minimum wage. He noted that the state was leading in northern Nigeria and ranked second after Lagos and Rivers states.
Comrade Lafene described the governor's decision as a step forward and added that the union looks forward to its full implementation. He thanked the governor for the development, revealing that during their meeting with state officials, the union had proposed amounts between N70,000 and N80,000. The governor, in his magnanimity and great respect for workers, approved the highest offer.

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The Executive Chairman of Agwara Local Government Area, Honourable Iliyasu Zakaria, recently donated the sum of ten thousand naira to every aged woman in two wards of the local government.
In Papiri Ward, thirty women benefitted from the cash donations, while fifty women benefitted in Gallah Ward.
In his speech, the Executive Chairman emphasised the necessity of supporting aged women due to the current economic hardship in the country. He urged the women to remain patient, assuring them that the situation is under control.
Adding to the chairman's remarks, the political adviser to the chairman, Alhaji Mamman Chiko, encouraged the women to always support the chairman's policies and agenda. He advised the women to use the money judiciously.