Working for the federal government: how many staff and what they are paid

The short version

The federal government's pay bill grew from $250 million in 2021 to $371 million in 2025. Until recently, a third of that was paid outside the official payroll; by the end of 2025 almost all of it went through the payroll system (Federal Ministry of Finance, Non-formalized Non-security Wage Bill Review, 18 March 2026).

Who is on the payroll

At the end of 2025 the federal government paid 23,573 civilian staff, excluding the armed forces, military court and police (same source):

The ministry says a quarter of staff are "yet to be mainstreamed into the civil service". The largest single employer is the Office of the President, with 1,998 people on its payroll, followed by the Ministry of Finance with 1,358 (same source).

How pay is spread

The ministry sorts staff into grades by monthly pay (Wage Bill Review):

Most teachers paid for the member states are in grade C. Most ministry guards are in grade D. For pay in the private sector and the cost of living, see Jobs and poverty and Mogadishu's economy.

What it costs

In 2025 federal pay cost $371.1 million, 98 percent of what was budgeted and 8.6 percent more than in 2024. That was 38 percent of all federal spending. Of it, $204 million was basic salaries and $131 million was allowances (Federal Ministry of Finance, 2025 End-Year Budget Performance Report). About $193 million of the total went to civilian staff, and the rest to the security forces (Wage Bill Review).

Government workers paid $10.5 million in income tax in 2025, and private sector workers $17.1 million (2025 End-Year Budget Performance Report). See Taxes in Somalia.

The member states spend an even larger share on pay: 57 percent of their budgets on average in 2025, and Hirshabelle 99.5 percent (same source). See How the federal member states raise and spend money.

Ending off-payroll pay

In 2021, 36 percent of federal pay was paid outside the official payroll system. Under a reform that is a condition of the Recurrent Cost and Reform Financing project (RCRF III), this was cut every year (Wage Bill Review):

The target had been to finish by the end of 2024; it was reached a year later (same source).

Notes on the figures

The Central Bank's Annual Report 2025 gives federal pay in 2025 as $371 million, the same as the Finance Ministry. The wage bill review says its civilian totals for 2021 and 2022 include some security pay, while those for 2023 to 2025 do not, so the civilian totals are not comparable across all five years.