Poverty strategy launched

Although Namibia is perceived as a middle-income country with a high per capita income, realities on the ground were different, a senior Government official has emphasised. The Director General of the National Planning Commission (NPC), Helmut Angula, said that at a per capita income of US$2 000 (about N$14 000) a year, Namibia was perceived as a fairly rich country, yet the majority were wallowing in poverty. "The gap between the haves and have-nots is quite big and there is an urgent need to bridge it if the peace and harmony we enjoy is to continue," Angula said. Decentralisation remained a key issue meant to ensure ownership and sustainability, while it was imperative that poor people played a role in monitoring the impact of development programmes on their wellbeing, he added. (The Namibian, Windhoek)