Government had to do a balancing act to increase the minimum wage.
This was one of the points made by Vice President of the Senate, Dr Muhammad Yunus Ibrahim, during his input to the Budget Debate today.
He said government must be commended for its timing and calculation in carrying the minimum wage from $17:50 cents to $20.50 cents which takes effect from January 1st next year.
Dr Yunus Ibrahim said the aim was to not drive inflation up but ensure workers get benefits especially in light of the rising cost of living.
He said this is significant as the nation is now enjoying an unemployment figure of 3.7 from April to June falling from 4.9 percent for the period January to April this year.
Dr Ibrahim said momentum is picking up now in the economy and this is very encouraging coming out of the covid-19 pandemic.
Dr Ibrahim also spoke on the reform of the local government system, poverty, lowering the food cost, the agriculture sector and non-communicable diseases.