Basic income grant closed to new applicants as funding runs dry

Katutura, Windhoek. Photo: kuloser / Pixabay

The government cannot register new beneficiaries for the Conditional Basic Income Grant (CBIG) because the programme’s funding has run out.

The line ministry says it can only enrol more people once new budget allocations are received. For now, 27 132 beneficiaries still receive the N$600 monthly payment. The government spent almost N$16.3 million on September payouts.

The grant is means-tested. Applicants qualify only if they have no other source of income apart from children’s grants.

Khomas Region has the largest share, with almost 12 000 beneficiaries, about 44% of the national total. Every other region with beneficiaries has fewer than 2 000 households.

The CBIG grew out of the Food Bank Programme, which President Hage Geingob launched in 2016. Food bank recipients were moved from food parcels to cash in 2022. Cabinet later approved raising the payment to N$600 per household per month, when 8 339 food bank beneficiaries were covered. The scheme has since grown more than threefold.

It has long faced funding pressure. The Deputy Minister for Marginalised Communities, Royal /Ui/o/oo, told Parliament that limited funding was straining the ministry’s feeding programme and the roll-over of the CBIG. The Basic Income Grant Coalition has argued for a universal, unconditional grant, saying the current scheme reaches only a small share of the population.

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