The DRC government has announced an increase in the salaries of civil servants and career public officials from the month of April 2022. The 30% increase was made public by Jean-Pierre Lihau the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of the Civil Service.
According to Lihau, the government and the Civil service syndicate group agreed on a progressive increase that will include the military and police. Another 45% increase is planned for the third quarter of this year.
The salary increment is the Congolese government’s response to the public outcry and recurrent demands of civil servants concerning the ‘high cost of basic needs’ touching on their standard of living. A loaf of bread that was selling for 200 Congolese francs a few days ago now costs more than double.
But to carry out the salary increment successfully, the Congolese government hopes to “recover the money wrongly collected by agents, known as accumulators who are on several payrolls in the various ministries of public administration.”
A section of civil servants remains an Achilles heel on the government’s move and is calling for major reforms and a clean-up of the public administration, including the departure of some 350,000 people eligible for retirement.
