A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) is challenging the Irfaan Ali Administration to deliver a minimum 25% increase in public-servant wages – a move it said is necessary to reduce the grave disparity that exists between the salaries earned by public servants compared to those received by the elected leaders of the country.

The APNU said based on monthly salaries reported in late 2024 and 2025, the president earns approximately $34.8 million or $2.9 million monthly, while ministers and the Leader of the Opposition earn approximately $21.6 million or $1.8 million monthly. It said by contrast, general public servants earn a minimum of $100,000 per month or $1.2 million per annum.

Leader of People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) and the APNU, Aubrey Norton said the figures reveal a wide gap between the earning of the government elite and the statutory minimum earnings. He said with the country’s economy projected to expand even further in 2026, the government can afford to pay public servant better.

“Given the government elite and public sector minimum wage disparity and the current and projected growth in oil revenue and the high cost of living, APNU now calls on the government to deliver a minimum 25% increase in public-servant wages, to restore purchasing power for state employees and help boost the non-oil economy,” Norton said.

He said though the country is experiencing exponential growth due to its booming oil sector, many public servants have seen real earnings decline in the face of inflation and higher living costs.

“If oil revenues are expanding, a portion must be used to fund equitable compensation for those who deliver core public services,” he said, while adding that increase in wages and salaries will help to stimulate the domestic economy.

Better public servant wages, he added, would reduce the number of public servants migrating to the private sector. Guyana, Norton stressed, could afford to pay its people better.

“The government’s own reporting estimated total wages and salaries in the public sector at approximately GYD 227 billion by end-2025. A uniform 25% increase on that base would raise the annual wage bill by about GYD 56.75 billion to 283.75 billion). That is affordable,” he said.

Norton said the reality is many young people, including university graduates, are experiencing alarming economic difficulties and uncertainty that demand public policy attention.

He said based on interaction on the ground, young people are affected by the government’s policies which disregard their prevailing challenges.

Norton said among the most commonly reported challenges experienced by young people are the rising cost of living compared to wages and savings- including food, rent and imported goods, under-employment and the mismatch between education or skills and available work opportunities, and uneven distribution of economic gains from the rapid growth sectors, which has left visible pockets of prosperity compared to communities still lacking adequate services.

Many youths report that corruption, favoritism, and politically connected awards of contracts undermine government transparency, the APNU said.

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