A SAD PICTURE

The picture above shows a sad situation. Although Namibia is classified as a middle-income country, the income gap between rich and poor is one of the most marked in the world. The government has made progress in addressing problems such as gender parity and access to basic education, yet this imbalance persists. Although a tiny proportion of the population enjoys wealth, overall poverty rates are high and the number of people living under the poverty line is growing:

Country    2002    2006    2007    2008    2009    2010    2011    2012
Namibia    50       34.9    34.9     34.9     34.9    55.8     55.8     55.8

A large part of the population lives in rural areas, and are concentrated in the northern regions. The rural poor are typically undereducated, with limited access to health care, adequate sanitation and electricity. Food shortages are a major problem during years of drought, and nutritional intake is consistently poor.

The Nambian reported that now some families are living on a meal a day in Kavango and are in dire need of basic food and clothing.

Rundu Rural East Constituency Councillor Michael Shikongo said some 85 families are “skating on thin ice” and do not know where their next meal would come from. He appealed to Good Samaritans, especially those with unused food and discarded clothes and bedding to donate them to his office for distribution to the needy people in his constituency.

Shikongo singled out 215 elderly people in the Rundu Rural East Constituency, who do not benefit from Government’s pension grants because they do not have the necessary documentation as some of them relocated from neighboring Angola many years ago, and are yet to acquire Namibian identity documents. These elderly people are in need of blankets, especially during this rainy season when mosquitoes, which cause malaria, are common. Some food and items were donated, but there is still a great need.

• Try to understand the needs of the poor and pray for them with compassion your heart. 
• Live and pray with the understanding that God is our only source. He provides for us so that we can provides with Him for those in need. Pray the Church that will understand and practice 2 Cor.9:6-9: “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.”
• Pray that God will bless and use individuals, organizations and churches in Namibia to reach out to the physical and spiritual needs of the poor and needy.
• Learn more about prayer for the poor and needy.

Source: CIA World Factbook / also see http://www.indexmundi.com/g/g.aspx?c=wa&v=69 /