Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta announced on Sunday that his administration will immediately raise the country’s minimum salary by 12% to help employees cope with a rise in consumer costs caused in part by the Ukraine conflict.

“There is a compelling reason to revise the minimum wage so as to cushion our employees against further loss of their buying power,” he said during Labor Day celebrations in Nairobi, according to a statement provided by the president’s office.

He explained that the increase was essential since the minimum wage had not been revised in three years and the cost of living had risen.

Kenya’s current monthly minimum wage is 13,500 Kenyan shillings ($116.68).

According to the statistics office, inflation in the east African country increased to 6.47 percent year on year in April, up from 5.56 percent in March.