The statutory minimum wage across Africa can vary by a factor of eight between countries that sometimes share the same currency. That is the central finding of a comparison of legal minimum wages in force on 1 January 2026 across eleven African economies — from Morocco, where the guaranteed inter-occupational minimum wage stands at 3,422 dirhams per month (≈ €329, ≈ $366), to Nigeria, where the National Minimum Wage Act 2024 sets the floor at 70,000 naira per month (≈ €41, ≈ $46).
Each figure below is tied to its legal basis — a presidential decree, a labour act, or a tripartite committee decision — and converted into both euros and approximate US dollars so that an employee, a prospective expat, or an employer can assess what actually applies to a given contract.
2026 Statutory Minimum Wages: 11-Country Snapshot
Conversion methodology: the fixed parity of 655.957 FCFA per euro (BEAC/BCEAO) is applied for CFA-zone countries; World Bank average 2025 exchange rates are used for other currencies, with ECB reference rate of 28 October 2026 (1 € = 1.1133 USD) applied throughout. These equivalents indicate orders of magnitude for comparison purposes; the rate at the moment of actual payment will differ.
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| Country | Minimum Wage 2026 | Approx. monthly (€ / USD) | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Morocco | 3,422 MAD/month (17.92 MAD/hr) | ≈ €329 / ≈ $366 | Upward revision effective 1 January 2026 (social agreement) |
| DR Congo | 21,500 CDF/day (≈ 559,000 CDF/month over 26 working days) | ≈ €186 / ≈ $207 | Decree No. 25/22 of 30 May 2025, fully in force 1 January 2026 |
| Tunisia | 554.736 TND/month (48-hr week) · 470.251 TND/month (40-hr week) | ≈ €166 / ≈ $185 | Decree No. 67/2026 (agricultural minimum: Decree No. 66/2026) |
| Algeria | 24,000 DZD/month (138.46 DZD/hr) | ≈ €164 / ≈ $183 | Presidential Decree No. 26-01 of 7 January 2026 |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 75,000 FCFA/month | ≈ €114 / ≈ $127 | Decree No. 2022-986 of 21 December 2022 (effective 1 January 2023) |
| Kenya | 15,201 KES/month (Nairobi, unskilled worker) | ≈ €106 / ≈ $118 | Labour Relations Act, annual revision (May) |
| Senegal | 64,223 FCFA/month (370.526 FCFA/hr) | ≈ €98 / ≈ $109 | Decree No. 2023-1710 of 7 August 2023 |
| Cameroon | 60,000 FCFA/month (41,875 FCFA in the public sector; 45,000 FCFA in agriculture) | ≈ €91 / ≈ $101 | Decree No. 2023/00338/PM of 21 March 2023 |
| Mali | 40,000 FCFA/month | ≈ €61 / ≈ $68 | Decree No. 2015-0363/P-RM of 19 May 2015 |
| Ghana | 21.77 GHS/day (587.79 GHS/month over 27 working days) | ≈ €42 / ≈ $47 | National Tripartite Committee decision of 9 November 2025, effective 1 January 2026 |
| Nigeria | 70,000 NGN/month | ≈ €41 / ≈ $46 | National Minimum Wage Act 2024 |
Key Numbers at a Glance
| Indicator | Data |
|---|---|
| Highest monthly minimum | Morocco: 3,422 MAD ≈ €329 / ≈ $366 |
| Lowest monthly minimum | Nigeria: 70,000 NGN ≈ €41 / ≈ $46 |
| Maximum spread | 8-to-1 ratio between Nigeria and Morocco (in euro terms) |
| Countries that raised their minimum on 1 January 2026 | 5 of 11: Algeria, Morocco, DR Congo, Tunisia, Ghana |
| Daily-rate minimum wage systems | 3 countries: DR Congo (21,500 CDF/day), Ghana (21.77 GHS/day), Tunisia for the agricultural minimum (21.336 TND/day) |
| Oldest legal basis still in force | Mali: decree dating from 2015 |
| Same nominal currency, different purchasing power | 64,223 FCFA in Senegal ≈ €98 / ≈ $109; 60,000 FCFA in Cameroon ≈ €91 / ≈ $101 |
What the Minimum Wage Does Not Tell You
A high minimum wage in euro or dollar terms does not automatically translate into a high standard of living. Morocco’s minimum — the highest in this comparison — operates within an economy where median wages remain far below Western European levels. Nigeria sits at the opposite extreme: the naira’s sharp depreciation over the past two years has stripped much of the purchasing power from the 70,000 NGN floor, even after the 2024 increase. Converting to euros or dollars measures imported purchasing power, not the local cost of living.
Coverage is the second limitation. Minimum wage protection only extends to workers in formal, declared employment relationships. According to the International Labour Organization, the majority of workers in sub-Saharan Africa operate in the informal economy, where no employment contract exists and labour inspections rarely reach. A statutory increase can therefore be substantial on paper while leaving most workers’ incomes entirely unchanged.
The third complication is periodicity. Comparing a daily-rate minimum (DR Congo, Ghana) with a monthly figure (Nigeria, Cameroon, Mali) requires an assumed number of working days — 26 or 27, depending on the convention used. The table above makes that assumption explicit in each case.
Five Countries That Raised Their Minimum Wage in 2026
- Algeria: the national guaranteed minimum wage (known locally as the SNMG) rose to 24,000 dinars per month (138.46 DZD/hr) under Presidential Decree No. 26-01 of 7 January 2026, effective 1 January 2026.
- Morocco: under the social agreement, the minimum wage reached 3,422 dirhams per month (17.92 MAD/hr) on 1 January 2026, up from 3,111 MAD in 2024 and 2,970 MAD in 2023 — a clear upward trajectory over three consecutive years.
- DR Congo: Decree No. 25/22 of 30 May 2025 set the daily minimum at 21,500 Congolese francs, with a phased implementation from May 2025 and full application from 1 January 2026.
- Tunisia: Decrees No. 66/2026 and No. 67/2026 raised the industrial minimum to 554.736 Tunisian dinars per month on a 48-hour week (470.251 TND on a 40-hour week) and the agricultural daily minimum to 21.336 TND per day.
- Ghana: the National Tripartite Committee set the daily minimum at 21.77 cedis for 2026, a 9% increase on the 19.97 GHS floor that applied in 2025, effective 1 January 2026.
The remaining six countries in this comparison had not published a new pay scale by 1 January 2026: Côte d’Ivoire (decree from 2022), Kenya (annual revision due in May), Senegal (decree from 2023), Cameroon (decree from 2023), Mali (decree from 2015), and Nigeria (National Minimum Wage Act 2024).
Minimum Wage vs. Average Wage: Two Very Different Benchmarks
The statutory minimum is a legal floor; the average wage describes what employers actually pay across sectors and skill levels. The gap between the two is often the sharpest indicator of a labour market’s dynamism. In Morocco and Algeria, average wages significantly exceed the minimum, lifted by manufacturing, the civil service, and services. In Mali and Cameroon, the proximity between the minimum and observed wages reflects labour markets dominated by small enterprises and informal arrangements.
For anyone considering a move or an assignment to one of these countries, the right approach is to cross-reference both figures: confirm the statutory minimum that applies to the contract, then check sector- and city-level average wages. Those country-level breakdowns, sector by sector, are available in Les Afriques’ dedicated country pages linked below.
How to Verify the Minimum Wage That Applies to a Contract
- Go to the source, not an aggregator: job portals frequently carry figures that are two or three years out of date. The official government gazette, the Ministry of Labour website, or the decree cited in the table above is the only reliable reference.
- Distinguish the general minimum from the agricultural minimum: in Tunisia and Cameroon, the agricultural sector has its own, separately legislated daily rate.
- Check the reference working week: a minimum calculated on a 48-hour week (Tunisia) produces a different monthly total than one based on 40 hours, even at the same hourly rate.
- Confirm gross or net: statutory minimums are gross figures. Social security contributions and income tax are deducted on top, at rates that vary significantly from one country to the next.
Frequently asked questions
Which African country has the highest minimum wage in 2026?
Among the eleven countries compared, Morocco has the highest nominal minimum: 3,422 dirhams per month, equivalent to approximately €329 (≈ $366) at the October 2026 reference rate. DR Congo (≈ €186 / ≈ $207) and Tunisia (≈ €166 / ≈ $185) follow. This euro-denominated ranking does not reflect local purchasing power, which differs substantially from one country to another.
Are these minimum wage figures gross or net?
The statutory amounts are gross minimums. Employee social contributions and income tax are deducted afterwards, according to each country’s own schedules. Ghana is a noted exception: according to the National Tripartite Committee’s recommendation, the 2026 daily minimum of 21.77 GHS is exempt from income tax.
Why are some minimum wages set as a daily rate?
DR Congo (21,500 CDF/day), Ghana (21.77 GHS/day), and Tunisia’s agricultural minimum (21.336 TND/day) use a daily structure, a legacy of labour markets where day-labour hiring remains prevalent. To produce a monthly equivalent for comparison, these daily rates are multiplied by the number of working days assumed under the applicable collective agreement — 26 or 27 days in the calculations used here.
Does the minimum wage protect informal workers?
No. Minimum wage legislation only covers declared employment relationships. An employer in the informal sector is not subject to it in practice, given the absence of formal contracts and limited labour inspection capacity. This is why a statutory increase does not automatically raise incomes for the broader working population — a structural constraint that affects most sub-Saharan African economies to varying degrees.
Source: Les Afriques, comparative data as of 1 January 2026; legal references: Presidential Decree No. 26-01 (Algeria), Decrees No. 66/2026 and No. 67/2026 (Tunisia), Decree No. 25/22 of 30 May 2025 (DR Congo), National Tripartite Committee decision of 9 November 2025 (Ghana), National Minimum Wage Act 2024 (Nigeria), and respective national official gazettes for all other countries.
