VIENTIANE, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Lao government has decided to provide a higher supporting allowance for low-wage civil servants and retirees to cover their household spending on basic needs amid the skyrocketing cost of living.
Under a new instruction issued by the Ministry of Finance, state officials and retirees whose monthly wage is less than 1.7 million kip (some 83 U.S. dollars) will benefit from the pay increase, local media reported on Thursday.
The pay rise will be rolled out in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Despite severe budgetary constraints, the government is attempting to boost national income and increase income earned by state officials to help them cover basic living costs.
The government took the decision to increase minimum wage for the third time in less than 18 months in an attempt to enable people to counter rampant inflation and continuing financial hardship.
In the first six months of 2023, the cost of goods and services soared 38.06 percent, affecting household incomes and people's standards of living in the Southeast Asian country.
While inflation has eased in recent months, Laos still has one of the highest inflation rates in the region.
Skyrocketing inflation has forced many households to cut spending on food, health and education to ensure that their income keeps pace with the rising cost of living. ■
