NEPRU's Quarterly Economic Review - September 2008 Review of the BIG Assessment Report

NEPRU publishes among other publications a Quarterly Economic Review (QER). The purpose of the QER is to highlight relevant economic events that occurred during the quarter under review. Events include, amongst others, the publication of reports that are of interest to the broader Namibian public. In this regard, NEPRU undertook a brief review of the first Assessment Report of the pilot BIG project published by the BIG Coalition. NEPRU recognises that the average expenditure figures provided in the Assessment Report are neither suitable for determining the income poverty level at the settlement, nor are they suitable for an analysis of changes in expenditure patterns, because of existing income disparities. NEPRU acknowledges that information provided in a newspaper report concerning alleged crime in the vicinity of the settlement was not verified with official information from the area. However, accusations levelled at NEPRU based on its review of the Assessment Report, such as being 'biased favouring the rich and powerful' or aligning 'itself with the vested interests of some white farmers in the area' are baseless and unfounded.