Kwara State Approves 30% Pay Allowance for Media Houses From June

ILORIN — The Kwara State Government has approved a 30 percent peculiar allowance for all media houses and agencies under its control. The allowance takes effect on June 1, 2026, and applies to all categories of staff in public media institutions across the state.

The state government announced the approval on Monday. Information Commissioner Afolabi Shittu said the decision is part of the Kwara administration’s commitment to ensuring equity in the treatment of all public servants. He said media workers perform a critical function in governance communication and deserve recognition through better compensation.

“Our media houses play a vital role in informing the public and projecting the activities of the government. Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq believes that those who serve in public media deserve the same consideration as other public servants. This allowance reflects that belief,” Shittu said.

The 30 percent peculiar allowance will be calculated on each employee’s basic salary. It will be paid monthly alongside regular salaries starting from June 2026. The directive covers staff of the Kwara State Broadcasting Service, the state’s official newspaper, and other media agencies under the Information Ministry.

What It Means for Media Workers

For many journalists, broadcasters, and support staff in Kwara’s public media, the allowance represents a meaningful improvement in their take-home pay. Public media workers in Nigeria’s states are often among the lower-paid civil servants, with salaries that have not kept pace with inflation over the past several years.

The Nigeria Union of Journalists Kwara State Council welcomed the announcement. Council Chairman Olayinka Ayoola said the decision acknowledges the sacrifices that media workers make in service to the public. He called on other states to follow Kwara’s example and improve compensation for their public media employees.

Furthermore, better pay for public media workers is directly linked to the quality of journalism produced by state-owned outlets. When journalists are poorly paid, they are more vulnerable to inducements from sources seeking favourable coverage. Higher compensation reduces this vulnerability and supports more independent reporting.

Context and Significance

The allowance announcement comes as Nigeria’s press freedom environment faces scrutiny. Several journalists have been arrested or harassed in different states in recent months. The Kwara government’s move to improve media worker welfare is a positive signal, even if it does not directly address editorial independence.

Civil society groups said the allowance is welcome but noted that remuneration is only one aspect of a healthy media environment. They called on the Kwara government to also ensure that its public media houses have editorial independence and are not used as mouthpieces for the administration’s political messaging.

The implementation of the allowance will be monitored by the state’s Ministry of Finance to ensure that funds are properly disbursed. Workers have been assured that the first payment will appear in their June salary accounts without delay. The measure is expected to improve morale significantly across Kwara’s state media institutions.