This year, the authorities decided to mark the "significant contribution of women to the transformation of society and the upbringing of a devoted generation to the Motherland, as well as the preservation of traditions of honoring mothers and sisters in the conditions of a new era."
The payment will be made from March 2 to March 6 and will cover the following categories of citizens:
▪️ employees of various institutions and organizations, regardless of their ownership form,
▪️ pensioners and recipients of social benefits,
▪️ graduate students, doctoral students, and clinical residents who study without interrupting their work,
▪️ participants of the courses of the Academy of State Service under the President of Turkmenistan, studying for at least two years,
▪️ students of schools and universities,
▪️ children from kindergartens.
This tradition of giving 60 manats in honor of March 8 has been ongoing since 2017. However, despite this, there has been a sharp rise in prices for goods and products since 2019. For example, in March 2019, a kilogram of beef cost 22 manats, while by January 2026, the price had risen to 110 manats. Locally produced apples increased in price from 6 to 26 manats per kilogram.
Previously, before 2019, the gift for International Women's Day was 40 manats ($11.4 at the official exchange rate).
The minimum wage in the country was set at 790 manats in 2019, and by 2025 it had increased to 1410 manats. In 2026, there was no increase in wages. In September 2025, one of the elders suggested stopping the increase in payments, claiming that "the social and living conditions of the population have reached a high level."
Since 2015, the official exchange rate of the manat has remained stable at 3.5 manats per dollar. Meanwhile, the real exchange rate on the black market is 19.5 manats, which means that the actual value of the presidential gift is not $17 at the official rate, but only $3.
