Nigerian senators and members of the country’s House of Representatives earn higher salaries than most of their counterparts in 28 other countries – many of them wealthier and more developed – according to an analysis by the Economist magazine, All Africa reports.
A Nigerian legislator earns about $189,000 a year – 116 times Nigeria’s per capita income, the report says.
That’s way more than all but one of the 29 countries whose data were analysed. Only Australian lawmakers, with $201,200 annual salary, earn more than Nigerian. Their salaries are three times their country’s per capita.
Nigerian legislators beat their counterparts in Britain who earn $105,400 a year, the U.S. ($174,000), France ($85,900), South Africa ($104,000), Kenya ($74,500), Saudi Arabia ($64,000) and Brazil ($157,600).
The divide is even greater when salaries are compared as a ratio of per capita income. The salary of a Nigerian lawmaker is 116 times the country’s per capita, while that of a British member of parliament is 2.7 times.
Here’s some other lawmaker salaries, according to the report: Ghana ($46,500), Indonesia ($65,800), Thailand ($43,800), India ($11,200), Italy ($182,000), Bangladesh ($4,000), Israel ($114,800), Hong Kong ($130,700), Japan ($149,700), Singapore ($154,000), Canada ($154,000), New Zealand ($112,500), Germany ($119,500), Ireland ($120,400), Pakistan ($3,500), Malaysia ($25,300), Sweden ($99,300), Sri Lanka ($5,100), Spain ($43,900) and Norway ($138,000).
The Nigerian National Assembly has refused to provide information on salaries and allowances to journalists and activists despite requests made under the Freedom of Information Act, All Africa reports.