Singapore Prime Minister tops list as highest-paid world leader

PUTRAJAYA: Being a world leader comes with considerable responsibility, but in some instances, great power may also come with hefty paychecks.

Based on data of how much world leaders make annually, taken from PoliticalSalaries.com, Forbes reported that Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong is the highest-paid government leader in the world, with an annual salary of almost US$1.69mil.

Far behind, in second place, is Switzerland President Viola Amherd, who earns about US$570,000 per year.

The report also said that many of the world’s best-paid leaders are from English-speaking countries.

It said that US President Joe Biden earned about US$400,000 annually. This is less than what Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese earns per year (US$413,351) but more than what Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer (US$317,077), New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (US$311,971) and Canada Prime Minister Justin Treudeu (US$301,475) earn per year.

In eighth place is German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who gets US$ 293,722 annually.

When the pay of a world leader is compared to their country’s gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, Kenyan President William Rutto takes first place.

According to data from 2022, he makes the equivalent of US$136,000, or 2360% of the country’s GDP per capita.

Singapore takes second place, with the Prime Minister’s salary accounting for 1,320% of the country’s GDP per capita, according to data from 2023.

Tanzania President Samia Suuhu Hassan makes 1,285% of her country’s GDP per capita, and South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa makes 1,084% of his country’s GDP per capita. They make up the third and fourth place on the chart, respectively.

Switzerland's President comes in fifth place at 681% of the country’s GDP per capita, followed by Australia’s Prime Minister (659%) and New Zealand’s Prime Minister (659%). These are the first three countries whose leader earn less than 1,000% of their country’s GDP per capita.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the lowest-paid world leaders are Ethopea's Prime Minister (approximately US$1,700), Nigeria's President (US$2,200), Mongolia's Prime Minister (US$3,800), Sri Lanka's Prime Minister (US$3,900), and Argentina's President (US$4,500).

Notably, Malaysia is one of the countries missing from the chart. Also, all the currency exchanges were based on Sept 4, 2024 rates.