WINDHOEK: Alex Shimuafeni, the Statistician-General of the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), has confirmed that the outstanding salaries for NSA census field staff and transportation service providers will be paid starting Monday, November 13, 2023. This announcement addresses concerns regarding the delayed compensation for those involved in the recent census activities.
According to Namibia Press Agency (NAMPA), Shimuafeni stated in a media briefing on Friday that the payment process will begin with the first region on Monday. Additionally, the NSA aims to complete salary payments to census field staff and transportation service providers by Friday, November 10, 2023. Shimuafeni emphasized the NSA's commitment to avoiding further delays and ensuring the smooth processing of payments. He noted that any payment requests lacking complete documentation would be handled separately, and updates on the payment status would be provided daily.
Shimuafeni also mentioned that the NSA has already disbursed training allowances, field staff allowances, and transport allowances to various field staff members, including enumerators, team supervisors, and constituency supervisors. The remaining payments involve the actual salaries of more than 13,000 census field staff. The payment process for these staff members includes verifying returned equipment for any damages or losses, contract content verification, and checking for any disciplinary issues.
The NSA's procedure for paying more than 2,700 vehicle owners involves contract verifications, reconciliation of fuel usage against the balance due, days worked, and verification of banking details. Shimuafeni assured that staff members are diligently working to ensure an effective and efficient process without compromising on quality or legal compliance.
In concluding, Shimuafeni cautioned census workers against falling prey to scams. He clarified that the NSA would not contact them for sensitive banking information, as all payments would be made based on the banking details already submitted by the staff.