Volkena
Toronto – Civil servants in Wolaita district in southern Ethiopia are not being paid their salaries on time, in what appears to be a sign of a worsening financial crisis affecting the Ethiopian government.
BBC Amharic reports that salaries are delayed for several months and paid employees receive up to 40% withholding tax in installments. Sixteen districts and six city administrations are affected by the situation.
Sources said there are 64,000 civil servants in the affected area of Wolaita district.
Employees told BBC Amharic that the problem had been occurring repeatedly since 2020, but had worsened since last year.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said practices related to salary payments in Wolaita made employees vulnerable to insecurity, citing a civil servant from the region's Department of Job Creation and Enterprise Development.
Paid employees are said to only receive up to 60 to 70 percent of their salaries. This situation, combined with the rising cost of living, is increasing the burden on public servants to support their families.
Delays in salary payments have also resulted in civil servants having to survive on payday loans.
What is causing the delay? BBC Amharic quoted civil servants in Wolaita district as saying spending on fertilizers, allowances and gas is causing the cash crunch.
However, the chronic government budget crisis is reflected in other areas as well. Earlier this week, other sources reported that the university had completed changes to the meal menu offered to students due to budget issues. Wolaita University, for example, announced to students that it was facing a budget shortfall and could no longer provide students with the same menu they had in the cafeteria.
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