Omitara

Basic Income Grant (BIG), on German Basic Income Grant (BGE ) is a social project in Namibia, which would give every citizen an unconditional basic income. For each person an unconditional payment of at least 100 monthly N $ is (equivalent to around 10 € ) until retirement age (60 years) provided. Funding is provisionally from donations.

The Basic Income Grant was first proposed in September 2003 by the Commission official Namibian Tax Consortium ( Namtax ). It is supported by the BIG Coalition, a broad coalition of churches and development organizations.

In January 2008, launched a two-year pilot project in Namibia 1000 -strong community Otjivero - Omitara, located 100 km east of the capital Windhoek. All residents, from infants to senior citizens, received a monthly basis the amount of $ 100 N unconditionally paid. In the six-month distance their living conditions were measured and compared. The project management promised a significant improvement of the living conditions through payments.

News

After the official end of the project in December 2009, from January 2010, a reduced amount ( 80 N $, about 8 euros ) paid. This payment was initially made ​​up expected in 2011, but eventually continued until March 2012. The carrying the BIG project in Namibia BIG coalition of churches, trade unions and non-governmental organizations had suffered a setback with the politically motivated discharge of the National Trade Union Federation ( NUNW ) 2010. The NUNW saw the project as the wrong way to solve the economic problems of individuals. In March 2012, the regular payment of a basic income in Otjivero - Omitara was adjusted. Since then, there have been only sporadic payments. However, the union two months later re-entered the coalition.

On the held in September 2012 World Congress of the Basic Income Earth Network ( BIEN ) in Munich reported Dirk Haarmann of the development in Otjivero, as well as on the introduction of a nationwide unconditional basic income.

The Namibian government had the pilot project in Otjivero approved, especially since this was almost exclusively carried out with foreign financial resources. But the government has always made ​​it clear that she had no intention of introducing a BIG nationwide. This negative attitude was rather aggravated under the influence of the pilot project. However, a major domestic political change now occurred that could give a BIG a new opportunity. For several years now, among the high-ranking politicians and ministers in Namibia only one person who openly confessed his BIG. That was Geingob Hage, who was Prime Minister once and later held several ministerial posts. However, he was never finance minister. This Hage Geingob since December 4, 2012 Prime Minister again.

The BIG project was surprisingly set on 10 February 2013.

Ways to finance a nationwide BIG

There are currently three possible ways of financing are under discussion. The VAT is to be increased by 6.5 %. Furthermore, a transformation of the tax system under discussion. The income tax is to be increased progressively, so the cost would be borne mainly high-income residents. A third source of funding is to be developed by the complete restructuring of the public expenditure budget.

Calculations by proponents of basic income would cost, according to the nationwide introduction of the BIG Namibian state between two and four percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The International Monetary Fund (IMF ), however, speaks of more than five percent. At a cost of about five percent of GDP, the project is considered not feasible. The numbers of the IMF were provided by the BIG Coalition in question.

Establishment of a Basic Income Grant in Namibia

Using the Basic Income Grant in particular the problem of poverty and unequal income distribution is to be fought. The inequality of income distribution Gini coefficient is measured in Namibia continues to be very high, but has improved after the country's independence. It was 1993, three years after independence, at 0.74, then decreased slightly to 0.70 and is according to the latest available survey in 2009/2010 at 0.58. Thus, Namibia continues to be one of a group of countries with very high income inequality. Two thirds of the population live below the poverty line. The BIG is to foster individual initiative. People took the hitherto social help, were for taking up paid employment, "punished" by removal of these subsidies. In addition, be positive effects on the persistence of high unemployment calculated. Many people are too poor to ever be able to apply for a job (mobility deficits, lack of suitable clothing, no postal address, ... ). Reference is also made in the discussion on the relationship between AIDS and poverty. Among the poorest of the AIDS infection rate is highest. The BIG aims to curb the spread of AIDS.

The proposals in Namibia rely on the discussion, which is conducted in South Africa for some time.

The BIG Coalition

The BIG Coalition is a arisen in April 2005 broad alliance of churches and development organizations. The aim is to fight poverty in Namibia by establishing an unconditional basic income. The alliance includes the Council of Churches of Namibia, the umbrella organization of NGOs ( Nangof ), the umbrella association of AIDS service organizations ( Nanaso ), the National Trade Union Federation ( NUNW ) (until 2010), the legal citizen advisory LAC and the Labour Resource and Research Institute ( Larri ) of. Seat of the campaign, the Department for Social Development ( dfsd ) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia ( ELCRN ). The management of the project will rest Claudia Haarmann and Dirk Haarmann.

The pilot project in Otjivero - Omitara

Financing and cost of the project

Launched in January 2008, a pilot project of the payment of a basic income was led by in the place Otjivero - Omitara. The project was called by the initiators " pilot project " because they hoped for an expansion of the project to the whole country. The project should demonstrate the administrative feasibility and the poverty-reducing effects of the BIG. The cost of the project were supported by Protestant churches of the Rhineland and Westphalia of, by the German Ministry for Development and Cooperation, by the Friedrich -Ebert -Stiftung and by individual donors from Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Namibia. To what extent the aforementioned groups of Zuwendern contributed financially to the project, is not known. Information on the costs of the pilot project vary widely. Audited figures above were not disclosed. However, the project manager have 3 million N stated in a newspaper article, the total cost of the pilot project $ ( 300,000 euros ). Estimates from outside the project 's compared to much higher sums, such as on a total cost amount of N $ 15 million (approx. EUR 1.5 million ). The differences in the figures and estimates are likely to be partly due to a different definition of " project costs ".

Details concerning the payment of the BIG

The city is representative of the economic problems of many places in Namibia. The places Omitara and Otjivero is 100 km east of Windhoek. The counted at the beginning of the project, 940 people of Omitara received two years of monthly 100-N $. Also, prisoners were to this payment. People who are over 60 years old, did not receive any payments, because their livelihood is covered by the right to a statutory minimum pension. Payment was made via a chip card on which the personal data (name, photo, fingerprints, registration number, payment transactions took place ) were stored for each resident. The disbursement of the money could be delayed up to six months. In the first months of the project, the money allocation was performed centrally in a day, while there were minor clashes.

Evaluations of project results

For the project, a semi- annual cycle of evaluations was originally provided. According to the survey, which was conducted in late 2007, four surveys were planned. It took place just two. The first report, published in September 2008, the developments in the first six months recorded in Otjivero under the influence of the BIG. The second research report, which appeared in mid-2009, covers the whole of 2008. In this documentation report also photos from the village Otjivero from the time found before, during and after the time of the pilot project. Contrary to the original announcement, no further surveys and studies have been carried out.

Effects of the BIG

Co-founder Herbert Jauch from the Labour Resource and Research Institute reported in an interview in the magazine Publik - Forum that after two years, virtually no child of the village is more undernourished. Before the introduction of the Basic Income Grant almost half of the children was affected. Meanwhile, finish around 90 percent of children complete primary school, previously the figure was 40 percent. The public hospital in Otjivero is now so widely used four times. By BIG also increasingly entrepreneurial activities have been initiated, according to reports. It is crucial that people can buy a first equipment for the company, and on the other hand sufficient purchasing power in the village is available to buy the products. According to police statistics cases of poaching and timber theft has decreased by 60 percent. To prevent that the money is spent on drink, the villagers have formed a committee to mutually consult, how to deal with the money. It was agreed that the pubs of the place will be closed on the payment date. And the BIG for the children is paid usually only to women. Overall, the conclusion is drawn that the balance of power in the village have changed: the position of women has improved, and the villagers have become more confident over the surrounding white farmers. As negative impact was noted that as a result people are drawn from other parts of the country after Otjivero (mostly relatives who are not entitled to the income ).

However, the above -mentioned beneficial effects of the BIG can be questioned due to methodological flaws in the project and in the evaluation.

The IMF refused the project is still in 2012 for reasons of principle. The UN Commission on Sustainable Development and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF ), however, have referred to the project in Namibia as a "best - practised model in development".

In addition, the model project can motivate them to donate money for the payment of the BGE, even if this is not enough for an entire state clearly in the rich nations. The end of 2012 has made further 6479 euros for Otjivero about the Cologne initiative basic income.

The situation of people in mid-2012 Otjivero

Mid-2012, shortly after the end of the regular monthly payments of (reduced) BIG, the economic and social situation in Otjivero is apparently not very favorable. Clemens von Alten, a journalist from the German Allgemeine Zeitung, reported in May 2012 of a meeting with the village elders of Otjivero, Serious Gariseb. He said: "For two decades, we are sitting here without work, development, perspectives. " Is the conclusion of the journalists. " Despite the support of the BIG any development in Otjivero can not be seen "

As for the material situation in Otjivero, Markus Wolff comes in an extensive article for the magazine GEO in a similar unfavorable outcome. But on the positive side, he sees the possibility that the BIG strengthens the individual enter - Can, which is for the people living in Otjivero Damara of great importance because it provides them social participation and recognition. Wolff follows a theory of the Tübingen ethnologist Sabine Klocke - Daffa.

Fundamental criticism

Recently, the view is expressed that the project was not sufficiently documented and actually even failed.