The government has clarified that recently gazetted amendments to legislation governing public servants do not increase or reduce salaries, but instead seek to harmonise implementation of pension reforms and improve administrative procedures related to special statutes in public institutions.
In a press release issued on May 26, the Ministry of Public Service and Labour explained that the amended legal instruments mainly focus on maintaining public servants’ take-home pay following pension contribution reforms that took effect in January 2025.
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The clarification follows the publication of amended legal instruments in the Official Gazette, including a Prime Minister’s order amending that of 2022 on allowances of public servants and funeral expenses, and a law of April this year amending the General Statute Governing Public Servants.
According to the ministry, under the amendments, there has been no change in the way salaries of public servants are determined.
Under the law, salaries continue to be determined through institutional salary structures approved by Cabinet, based on an institution’s index value, the level of the position within the structure, and responsibilities attached to the role.
For specialised institutions with special remuneration arrangements, salary structures remain approved by their respective boards of directors.
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Changes linked to pension reforms
The government also clarified that amendments introduced through the Prime Minister’s Order on allowances were adopted to align with pension reforms introduced in January 2025.
Under the reforms, pension contributions increased from 6 per cent of an employee’s basic salary to 12 per cent of gross salary, affecting both public and private sector employees in formal employment.
The contribution rate is expected to gradually rise to 20 per cent of gross salary by 2030, shared equally between employers and employees, with annual increments beginning in 2027.
According to Rwanda Social Security Board (RSSB), the reforms were designed to harmonise pensionable salary with taxable salary, meaning pension contributions are now calculated using gross salary instead of basic salary.
Under the new arrangement, transport allowances that were previously excluded are now considered in pension-related contributions.
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The Ministry of Public Service and Labour said the latest amendments were therefore intended to ensure public servants’ net salaries remain unchanged despite the revised pension deductions.
How allowances changed
Under the newly amended Prime Minister’s Order, housing allowance is now calculated using a multiplier of 0.2 (20 per cent) of a public servant’s basic salary, up from 1/7 (14.3 per cent) under the 2022 order.
Transport allowance was also revised from 1/7 (14.3 per cent) of the basic salary to about 0.156274 (over 15.6 per cent) in the 2026 order.
The responsibility allowance, which was previously fixed at 5 per cent of a supervisor’s monthly basic salary, is now calculated using a revised multiplier of 1.050156 (105 per cent) under the new gross salary framework introduced to align with pension reforms. This reflects a technical adjustment linked to the shift to a gross-based salary system rather than a direct increase in take-home pay.
The ministry indicated that responsibility allowance is granted to all public servants who, in accordance with the organisational structure, supervise subordinates at the same level. For instance, a Director of Finance supervising finance management specialists, is entitled to such an allowance because they are otherwise on the same position level.
It stated that that the amendments concern all public servants across government institutions, not only leaders.
The order also grants the minister in charge of public service powers to adjust the allowances in line with updated factors used in determining salaries and fringe benefits for public servants.
However, the ministry emphasised that the changes only affect gross calculations and not the actual amounts received by employees after deductions.
"The net housing, transport and responsibility allowances remained unchanged. Only the gross amounts were adjusted to reflect the changes resulting from the pension reforms, with no impact on the net allowances,” the ministry said.