Social payment increases may be halted in Turkmenistan

The Turkmenistan government is proposing to stop annual increases in wages, pensions, state benefits, and scholarships. This was reported by Zamin.uz.

This information was provided by veteran elder Yozmurod Otamurodov at the People's Council meeting chaired by Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. Otamurodov addressed the country's leader Serdar Berdimuhamedov, highly appreciating the government's policy of steadily improving the population's living standards.

In his opinion, the increase of social payments should be stopped because the living conditions of the population are already at a good level. Otamurodov also emphasized that such benefits are rarely found in other countries of the world.

He requested that the saved funds be directed towards the country's development and important projects. President Berdimuhamedov expressed gratitude for his speech and recommendations.

However, this proposal sparked intense discussions on Turkmen social networks. Many users pointed out that the inflation rate is much higher than the official indexation, highlighting the difficulties in the population's living conditions.

For example, the price of meat has doubled in the last six months, and clothing expenses for students have become a heavy burden for families. Many commentators do not consider the elder's proposal sincere, emphasizing low incomes and livelihood difficulties.

Currently, the minimum pension in Turkmenistan is around 550 manat, and benefits are about 520 manat. Officials have not yet commented on the cancellation of payment indexation.

It is worth noting that in 2015, similar statements led to the complete abolition of benefits for services.