WINDHOEK, April 25– Namibia launched its 2025/2026 Household Income and Expenditure Survey (NHIES) on Thursday, a nationwide data collection initiative aimed at tracking income patterns and poverty levels to support targeted development planning.
Speaking at the launch event, Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA) Statistician General Alex Shimuafeni said the agency will gather information from 11,016 randomly selected households across all 14 administrative regions between April 28, 2025, and April 22, 2026.
The NHIES is conducted every five years, serving as the country’s main source of data used to calculate poverty and inequality indicators, Shimuafeni added.
“The NHIES main objectives are to collect data necessary for understanding Namibia‘s household income and expenditure patterns, as well as measure poverty and inequality conditions,” he said.
Shimuafeni said field staff trained by the NSA will assist households in recording daily income and expenditure for 14 days, including all money spent and income received by selected households.
Namibia remains one of the most unequal countries in the world despite being classified as an upper-middle-income economy.
According to the World Bank, Namibia‘s Gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality, was among the highest globally in recent years.
The results of the NHIES will help policymakers fine-tune social protection programs and inform decisions to reduce inequality and improve living standards.
Shimuafeni explained that the data will also help Namibia meet its national development targets and international obligations, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. (Xinhua)
