By Yiep Joseph
Government has announced that the 24th of each month will be the fixed date for the disbursement of salaries to civil servants and organized forces.
The decision was reached during a meeting between President Salva Kiir Mayardit and Vice President for the Economic Cluster, Dr. Benjamin Bol Mel, on Friday. The meeting called for timely salary payments starting in March.
President Kiir’s meeting with Dr. Bol focused primarily on the issue of salary payments, aligning with Dr. Bol’s recent pledge to ensure timely disbursements following his appointment.
“Dr. Bol Mel said starting this March, salaries will be disbursed consistently on the 24th day of every month—an essential step towards ensuring public service delivery, administrative efficiency, and economic reforms,” according to a statement from the office of the President.
“The government has announced a bold decision to effect timely salary payment for civil servants and organized forces, starting next month (March),” it added.
“This is to restore confidence among the public and organized forces in the government’s commitment to timely wage payments,” it partly read.
For his part, Vice President of the Economic Cluster stated that a roadmap has been developed to progressively clear all outstanding salary arrears.
In the statement Dr. Mel highlighted key economic interventions aimed at diversifying the economy beyond oil dependence.
These include investing in non-oil sectors, implementing financial regulations to ensure fiscal responsibility, introducing a biometric payment system to enhance transparency in salary distribution, integrating the banking system for improved financial operations, and establishing a wage bill monitoring system to oversee payroll management.
President Kiir expressed his support for the initiatives, emphasizing their importance in achieving broader economic transformation and fostering a more resilient economy.
This comes after prolonged delays in salary payments, with government employees going unpaid for over a year. The government has attributed these delays to the country’s economic challenges.
Despite the standard practice of paying government employees at the beginning of each month, the irregular payment schedule has led to a situation where workers often accept salaries whenever they are disbursed, regardless of the expected date.
Recently, Vice President for the Economic Cluster, Mel pledged to prioritize clearing salary arrears for civil servants and the organized forces.