THE pilot study of the Basic Income Grant (BIG) at Otjivero has come to an end, with the last payment scheduled for this month.

But in the absence of a national BIG, the BIG Coalition - which has been campaigning for the countrywide application of the grant - says it won't leave the area's close to 1 000 recipients in the pilot project in the lurch.

Most of the residents at Otjivero-Omitara have been receiving N$100 each as part of the pilot project, which started in 2007, with the aim of defining an alternative approach to addressing poverty and spurring economic development.

The BIG Coalition - consisting of the Council of Churches in Namibia, the National Union of Namibian Workers, the Church Alliance for Orphans, the National Youth Council, the Namibia NGO Forum Trust, and Nanaso - had carried out the two-year project with the hope of getting Government to implement the grant nationwide, as an answer to Namibia's poverty situation.

The Coalition yesterday voiced its disappointment that Government had not yet committed itself to implementing the universal cash grant countrywide despite its demonstrated impact in the pilot project. But faced with the ethical questions of what to do with the Otjivero residents who have been receiving the grant, it said that it would not "stand by and let the residents slide back into the dehumanising levels of poverty that they experienced before the BIG was introduced two years ago".

In this regard, the Coalition announced yesterday that while it would continue to campaign for a nationwide BIG, it would also provide a "bridging allowance" of N$80 a month to the BIG recipients of Otjivero in the meantime.

"This is not a solution but merely a 'stop-gap measure' which cannot replace the BIG", the Coalition's statement reads.

"During the next one or two years we expect the Government to introduce the BIG nationwide, which will make the bridging allowance superfluous", it adds.

But even though the Coalition hasn't been able to persuade Government as yet to implement the BIG nationwide, members of the Coalition say there have been other successes.

Nangof Director Uhuru Dempers says that the BIG campaign has placed the issues of poverty and inequality on the national agenda, with poor people having been given a platform "to express themselves on their situations".

He hopes that this will lead people across the country to collectively campaign for the BIG, and get Government to roll out the grant countrywide.

Dirk Haarmann of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia's (ELCRN's) Desk for Social Development, noted that in addition to drawing international attention on Namibia, the project had also succeeded in making many politicians more aware of the poverty crisis in Namibia.

In fact, he said, many politicians are in support of the BIG, with former Prime Minister and current Trade and Industry Minister, Hage Geingob, having been the first individual to donate to the pilot project when it was launched in 2007.

"Politicians are aware of the crisis. They know that poverty and unemployment are very high, and the debate is there and ongoing. But we would like to see action," Haarmann stated, adding that it is both urgent and necessary to address poverty directly in Namibia.

"Otjivero-Omitara is just a window into what Namibia could look like in the next six months or year, with the implementation of the BIG," he added.

The Coalition says that the implementation of the BIG at Otjivero has been "nothing short of spectacular: Poverty levels and child malnutrition declined dramatically, while school attendance and utilisation of the local clinic improved. Likewise, economic activities increased significantly while crime levels dropped."

It is convinced that if implemented countrywide, similar results can be expected in the rest of Namibia. "It is both beneficial and affordable, and its implementation is thus a question of political will," the Coalition says.

The cost of a nationwide BIG is estimated at about 5,7 per cent of the national budget.

Looking forward, Dempers said the Coalition would step up its campaign efforts for a national BIG, and place priority on raising awareness about the concept. He said the Coalition would also engage all levels of Government on national implementation of the BIG.

"We feel that the power is in the masses, and with the platform being provided for them to speak out and put pressure on our leaders, we are confident that with its new mandate, Government will speak to the aspirations of the people," he stated.