On 20 March, the Government of National Accord (GNA) officially endorsed the new 2019 budget – otherwise called the ‘financial arrangements’ as it has technically not been approved by the legislature, the House of Representatives (HoR) – totalling 46.8 billion Libyan dinars (LYD). Though the total wage bill increased by 3 billion LYD from 2018 to 25.2 billion (more than half the total budget), the National Oil Corporation (NOC) received no share of the wage increases. This is despite GNA Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj reportedly assuring NOC chairman Mustafa Sanallah that oil workers would receive the 67% wage increase. In response, an oil sector labour movement called the “67%” movement or “Sabaa Wa Siteen” demanded an immediate salary increase.
