Over 15 million members of the Federation of Informal Workers of Nigeria, FIWON, are kicking against a further hike in petrol pump price in the interest of every citizen.
The FIWON General Secretary, Gbenga Komolafe, at a briefing in Abuja, argued that it is unhealthy for the Nigerian economy if the government deliberately and persistently excludes workers in the informal sector in key policy decision-making processes.
The informal sector in Nigeria comprises of self-employed, own-account working people, often in an unregulated environment marked by income instability, makeshift, and precarious work environment.
Statistics show that over 80% of the Nigerian working population, including agricultural production, are part of the informal economy.
Historically, the informal sector in Nigeria is bedeviled by lack of access to basic social protection services especially old age care with the operators subjected to exploitation through indiscriminate imposition of taxes and levies.
To this end, the FIWON appears to be a united voice for the sector in pushing for their positions to be heard in the decision-making processes of government.
The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic may have dealt a big blow to informal sector workers in Nigeria, as most of their work environments were affected by lockdown, but this group remains hopeful that their cries will be heard and they will be considered for palliatives that will cushion the effect on livelihoods.
Informal sector workers through the FIWON are, therefore, calling for more inclusiveness in current intervention programmes by the Central Bank of Nigeria, Ministries of Trade and Investment, Humanitarian Affairs, and Labour and Employment among others.