Sign at the window of a bakery in Amman reads: “This bread is for free for those who cannot afford it.” The bread is offered as part of a campaign aiming to help underprivileged families get the staple for free (photo by Muath Freij)

AMMAN — With the slogan “Bread for everyone”, a young Jordanian has launched a campaign to help underprivileged families get the staple for free.

Launched one month ago by Nadeen Maayeh, the campaign encourages people to buy bread from a bakery in Amman and leave it on a designated shelf, where underprivileged people can find the bread and get it for free, Maayeh said.

“I thought of introducing such an idea out of the difficult financial situation several Jordanian families are facing. Many people cannot afford to buy bread these days,” she told The Jordan Times in a recent interview.

Maayeh noted that the campaign’s three-member team are cooperating with 10 bakeries in Amman’s Sweifieh, Wadi Seer, Marj Al Hamam and other neighbourhoods, where people can donate bread for poor families.

“We set up a banner saying ‘This bread is free for people who cannot afford to buy it’ to attract both donors and underprivileged families,” added Maayeh, who runs her own business.

She said the campaign began with the whole team paying JD5 each to one bakery in Sweifieh and leaving the bread at the bakery.

“Some people cannot afford to buy even one-kilogramme of bread, which costs 250 fils,” she said.

An employee at the bakery, who refused to reveal his name, said that his customers were excited about the idea.

“Many customers liked the idea and started donating bread and told their friends about it, and so many people who cannot afford to buy bread came and got their share. The number of donors has been increasing,” he told The Jordan Times at the bakery.

Customer Khaled Al Faddi said he liked the idea.

“I pay JD1 and put the bread on the shelf. I liked the idea because when you sometimes give bread to poor people face-to-face, some of them do not accept,” he said.

“This way, they can come get the bread whenever they need it,” Faddi added.

Maayeh said bakers were also taking part in the campaign.

“Some bakers also donated bread themselves,” she added.

Ghassan Muammar, one of the campaign’s organisers, said the team seeks to reach out to bakeries across the Kingdom.

“Anyone can take part in the campaign by choosing a bakery in his or her neighbourhood and encouraging people to donate, or he or she can simply start donating bread,” Muammar told The Jordan Times.

He said that bread is the most basic item in people’s life.

“We visited several areas in the north of Jordan and the situation was really miserable. Some people really cannot afford to buy bread for their families,” he added.

“Jordanians want to help but some of them don’t know how. This initiative can give them a chance to help other people,” Muammar added.

Maayeh expressed hope that the number of volunteers will increase in the future.

“This is the simplest thing we can do to help other people. Jordanians are all one big family,” she said.

People who are interested in donating or otherwise helping out with the campaign can contact the organisers at 0797533901.

http://jordantimes.com/campaign-seeks-to-put-bread-on-every-familys-table