Raise Wages, Not Prices: Women’s Advocate Calls for Smarter Minimum Wage Reform

May 4, 2026 9:53 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook

By Nicholas Mwai.

A leading women’s advocate has backed a rise in Vanuatu’s minimum wage but cautions that increasing pay alone will not improve the lives of struggling families.

Women Against Crime and Corruption (WACC) Vanuatu Chairwoman and human rights defender Jenny Ligo is calling for a “three-legged approach” as the Government reviews the national minimum wage, arguing that past increases have failed to deliver real relief.

Speaking from three decades of experience working alongside women across the country, Mrs. Ligo said families continue to feel the pressure of rising costs.

“I support an increase. Families are hurting,” she said. “Since 2019, the cost of living has risen by 17.5% while wages stood still until 2023. The current VT300 per hour buys less rice, fuel, and school fees in 2026 than it did the day it was signed.”

However, she cautioned that wage increases on their own risk being undermined by economic pressures.

“Raising wages alone does not raise living standards. We saw it in 2019. We saw it again in 2023,” she said.

Mrs. Ligo pointed to the last major increase, when the minimum wage jumped from VT220 to VT300, noting that the sharp rise created challenges for businesses and workers alike.

“When VT220 jumped by 36% to VT300, many businesses struggled. Some cut staff hours. Others raised prices. For many women, the wage rise was swallowed by the shop counter the next week,” she said.

To avoid repeating the same outcome, she is urging the Government to adopt a balanced strategy built on three key pillars. First, she called for small, predictable annual increases linked to inflation.

“A 3 to 5 percent rise each year gives certainty to workers and businesses alike. It avoids the shock of large jumps followed by years of silence. Our women need to plan. So do our employers,” she said.

Second, she stressed the need for targeted monitoring of essential goods.

“A wage rise is not real if the price of rice climbs overnight to cover it. Government must watch the price of rice, flour, tinned fish, fuel, and transport to protect the purchasing power of workers,” she said.

Third, she highlighted the importance of supporting small and medium-sized businesses, which employ the majority of Ni-Vanuatu workers.

“If we want businesses to pay VT350 per hour, we must help them afford it,” she said. “Reduce import duties on food, subsidise inter-island shipping, and provide tax relief for those paying above the minimum wage.”

Ligo said her years working with women have shown that what families need is not just higher wages, but real purchasing power.

“A payslip with a bigger number means nothing if that money buys less,” she said.

She also welcomed the Government’s decision to consult widely on the issue, including engagement with business groups.

“Prime Minister Jotham Napat is right to convene a taskforce. But that discussion must include the women who wake at 4am to feed this nation,” she added.

Ligo ended with a strong call for meaningful reform.

“Raise the wage, yes. But give it three legs to stand on: predictable rises, price watch, and business cost relief,” she said. “Do that, and Vanuatu wins. Do only one, and we risk higher prices and job losses.”

“Our women have waited 46 years for real change. Let’s get it right this time.”