Nigeria removes 20,000 phantom workers from government payroll

Audit leads to savings of €10.5 million

Nigeria’s president Mohammadu Buhari Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
Nigeria’s president Mohammadu Buhari Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Nigeria’s government has removed more than 20,000 non-existent workers from its payroll following an audit, which has led to a saving of 2.29 billion naira (€10.55 million) from its monthly wage bill, the finance ministry said yesterday.

It said that the salary bill for this February had reduced by 2.29 billion naira compared with December 2015, when it began the audit, which was aimed at improving efficiency and reducing corruption.

– (Reuters)