BIG Coalition remembers Geingob’s efforts against poverty
We wish to join thousands of our compatriots in expressing our condolences to the family and friends of our late president, Dr Hage Geingob.
When remembering his contribution to Namibian politics, we will always recall his diplomatic skills, which he used to chair the drafting of the Namibian Constitution, as well as his role in building a unified civil service after independence. We appreciate his commitment to a free press and to safeguarding civil liberties.
In 2015, when Dr Geingob became the third president of the Republic, we fully supported his expressed declaration of war on poverty. At the time, 25 years into our independence, it had become clear that the triple burden of inequality, poverty and unemployment was tearing Namibia apart.
It had become blatantly obvious that Namibia needed drastic interventions to address these challenges and we were hopeful that some critical steps would be taken by the Geingob administration.
One noticeable intervention driven by the late president was the increase in universal social pensions for all Namibians.
Over the years, Dr Geingob demonstrated a keen interest in the concept of a basic income grant (BIG) for all Namibians.
He made a personal donation to the BIG pilot project in Otjivero and attended several public events hosted by the BIG Coalition (of which our trust is an integral part).
We were encouraged by the late president’s interest in exploring various strategies to fight poverty. His government responded to the coalition's advocacy for individual empowerment through cash assistance by converting its existing feeding programmes into cash grants. This allowed recipients to identify and take care of their most urgent needs on their own. We had hoped that his leadership would usher in the introduction of a universal BIG in Namibia.
The BIG Coalition was looking forward to ongoing engagements with Dr Geingob in this regard and we hope that his colleagues in government will honour his legacy by taking further steps to fight poverty, including the introduction of a universal BIG.
We wish his family strength in this difficult time.
Issued by the ESJT Trustees
Herbert Jauch, Nafimane Hamukoshi, Claudius Riruako, Doufi Namalambo, Rinaani Musutua and John Nakuta
When remembering his contribution to Namibian politics, we will always recall his diplomatic skills, which he used to chair the drafting of the Namibian Constitution, as well as his role in building a unified civil service after independence. We appreciate his commitment to a free press and to safeguarding civil liberties.
In 2015, when Dr Geingob became the third president of the Republic, we fully supported his expressed declaration of war on poverty. At the time, 25 years into our independence, it had become clear that the triple burden of inequality, poverty and unemployment was tearing Namibia apart.
It had become blatantly obvious that Namibia needed drastic interventions to address these challenges and we were hopeful that some critical steps would be taken by the Geingob administration.
One noticeable intervention driven by the late president was the increase in universal social pensions for all Namibians.
Over the years, Dr Geingob demonstrated a keen interest in the concept of a basic income grant (BIG) for all Namibians.
He made a personal donation to the BIG pilot project in Otjivero and attended several public events hosted by the BIG Coalition (of which our trust is an integral part).
We were encouraged by the late president’s interest in exploring various strategies to fight poverty. His government responded to the coalition's advocacy for individual empowerment through cash assistance by converting its existing feeding programmes into cash grants. This allowed recipients to identify and take care of their most urgent needs on their own. We had hoped that his leadership would usher in the introduction of a universal BIG in Namibia.
The BIG Coalition was looking forward to ongoing engagements with Dr Geingob in this regard and we hope that his colleagues in government will honour his legacy by taking further steps to fight poverty, including the introduction of a universal BIG.
We wish his family strength in this difficult time.
Issued by the ESJT Trustees
Herbert Jauch, Nafimane Hamukoshi, Claudius Riruako, Doufi Namalambo, Rinaani Musutua and John Nakuta
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