By: Marian Magdalene Bangura, Strategic Communication Unit – MoICE
The Government of Sierra Leone, through the Wages and Compensation Commission, has reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring fairness, transparency, and equity in public sector remuneration.
Speaking during the weekly government press conference on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, at the Miatta Civic Centre, the Chairman of the Wages and Compensation Commission, Hon. Alhaji Alpha Osman Timbo Esq., said the Commission was established under the visionary leadership of His Excellency President Dr. Julius Maada Bio to reform and modernize the country’s public sector pay system.
Hon. Timbo explained that the Commission’s primary mandate is to determine wages and compensation for public sector employees, ensuring that pay and benefits are based on equity and merit.
He noted that the Wages and Compensation Act applies to the President and members of the Executive, the Judiciary, statutory corporations, Commissions and Agencies, the Armed Forces, the Sierra Leone Police, and other security and intelligence bodies such as the Office of National Security (ONS). The law also covers all persons employed and paid from the Consolidated Fund.
Hon. Timbo emphasized that Parliament has repealed all previous Acts that granted various institutions the power to determine their own pay structures. That authority, he underscored, has now been centralized under the Wages and Compensation Commission.
“The Commission now has the exclusive responsibility to develop and establish mechanisms for determining emoluments, remuneration, and other conditions of service including pensions and gratuities for all public sector employees,” he stated.
He furthered that the Commission is tasked with conducting job evaluations, grading, and classification exercises across ministries, departments, and agencies to promote pay equity and eliminate inconsistencies.
In what he described as a significant milestone, Hon. Timbo announced that 2026 marks the official commencement of the national pay harmonization process. He disclosed that the Commission will give special attention to low-income earners in a bid to reduce wage disparities and promote fairness across all categories of public servants.
He also reaffirmed the Government’s determination to increase the national minimum wage in 2026, signaling the administration’s continued commitment to improving the welfare of workers and fostering a more productive public service.
