Burkina Faso president promises to reduce gov't wage bill

Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore said Sunday that since taking over in January, government employees had been working without any salary, and also promised to reduce government wage bill.

"I can confirm to you that since we started working on Jan. 12, none of the ministers has touched a single franc for his or her salary," Kabore said when he delivered his scorecard for the first 100 days.

"Even if you see us in ties, we are not wearing ties for our own interests but to work for the people," the president said when he spoke in Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso's commercial capital.

Kabore was elected in the first round during the Nov. 29, 2015 presidential elections with 53.63 percent of the votes cast.

The elections ended a 13-month political transition that began after a popular uprising that ended the reign Blaise Compaore in October 2014.

On Wednesday last week, Kabore and his prime minister decided to cap their communication allowance to 400,000 CFA Francs (about 700 U.S. dollars) per month, to reduce government wage bill.

The measure which is the first of its kind in Burkina Faso, also targeted certain ministers such as those in charge of defense, security and foreign affairs.

Heads of public institutions and other personalities at the rank of ministers will have their communication allowance limited to 200,000 CFA Francs.

The government has also outlined measures to reduce expenses on water, electricity and telephone service in public offices. Endit