Hiccups with income grant

The San community in the Epukiro constituency of the Omaheke region feel left out, as they are unable to benefit from the government’s Emergency Income Grant (EIG) of N$750 due to various challenges.The acting chief of the San people, Kandas Booi, this week said most members of his community have no cell phones and identification documents, required to benefit from the grant.“We are illiterate and some people didn’t even receive the massage well as no official from the government came to the settlement regarding this grant,” said Booi.The grant, he said will help his community members during this crisis time as most people lost jobs and are now home.“There are no tenders to help themselves financially due to the lockdown, most people are now home hungry,” he added.Booi suggested that government pay the N$750 by hand in order to ease the process saying: “This will be a very easy method and it must be done fast to reach everyone in the country as it is the case with pension payment.”Erica Kahuure from constituency office and also a volunteering officer for the Namibia Vulnerability Assessment Committee under the Office of Prime Minister acknowledged the challenges faced by the San community regarding the EIG.“We have requested the Office of San Development to register and receive money on behalf of the San. It is very difficult for them to access their money even through their employers,” she said.Namibians applied for the grant via small messaging services (SMS) and the money is paid out via digital wallets at participating banks.Kavango WestThe same complaints have also been received from Kavango West.The senior public relations officer of the Kavango West regional council, Salomo Tenga, said the economic stimuli sub-committee in the region is aware of challenges with ID documents, the absence of mobile phones and poor or unavailability of mobile networks in some parts of the region.Tenga said the sub-committee indicated that the majority of qualifying persons in the region may not benefit from the grant.“Qualifying persons in the region may not benefit due to poor or unavailability of mobile networks in some parts of the Kavango West region and some not having mobile phones,” Tenga said.The due date of 30 April for claims is not sufficient for all to get the money due to the congested network following the high volumes of SMSs, he added.“Access to commercial banks or automatic teller machines for people to withdraw money was also picked up as many have to travel long distances to Nkurenkuru for such facilities,” Tenga said.The committee recommended to the ministry of finance to reconsider IDs as a requirement and to include birth certificates and voter cards as well.The sub-committee is also recommending that the due date of the EIG be extended to at least the end of May.“Money for the needy should also be released to regional councils, particularly for those who cannot access banks,” it was proposed.FinanceMeanwhile, the ministry requested regional governors to assist in tracing eligible self-nominated beneficiaries for the EIG without cellphones and mobile telecommunication network connectivity.The ministry’s chief public relations officer, Tonateni Shidhudhu, indicated that several applications are put on hold or temporarily rejected and payment could not be made as the ministry needs further identification at the regional level.The ministry has requested regional governors to assist in tracing eligible self-nominated beneficiaries for the EIG without cellphones and mobile telecommunication network connectivity.Thus far, the ministry received 578 863 applications for the EIG and a total of 148 580 were rejected.The ministry will provide an opportunity for qualifying rejected applicants of the EIG to reapply, Shidhudhu said. - NampaThe appeal period as well as the modalities will be communicated at a later stage, therefore the ministry appeals for patience from affected people, he said. - Nampa

Hiccups with income grant

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-03

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Hiccups with income grant

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-03

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