Leen Hajjar
AMMAN — An expected rise in food prices along with the country's 13.6 percent unemployment rate is an ongoing concern for many Jordanians. While numerous citizens across the kingdom are struggling to secure the necessary resources for daily life, many organizations in the capital Amman are working tirelessly to combat hunger and help underprivileged families.
Food prices in 2016 are expected to rise by 20 percent, according to Raed Hamadah, representative of the food sector at the Jordan Chamber of Commerce. Hamadah attributed this increase to the 15 percent rise in electricity tariffs, which went into effect at the beginning of the year. Hamadah said that the increase in power tariffs will affect both imported and locally produced food products, and “consumers will ultimately pay the price," according to the Jordan Times.
The concern of hunger and unemployment in Jordan has encouraged organizations to launch various initiatives to combat these issues. The 2010-founded Jordanian Food Bank (JFB) is a nonprofit organization specialized in fighting hunger through innovation and diversity by creating effective programs addressing hunger problems in the kingdom. The organization strives to eliminate hunger, help those unable to work, solve poverty-related issues, and help the less fortunate become active members of society. The group’s ultimate goal is to end hunger in Jordan by 2020.
The Food Bank includes numerous projects such as the "Awareness for Hotels and Restaurants" campaign, which collects excess, untouched food from Jordanian hotels, events, buffets, and restaurants by packing it in foil trays and distributing it to families in need. The “Feeding Program” campaign also targets individuals who wish to donate money and purchase a monthly food package for an individual or a family.
According to the Jordan Times, last December, the Jordanian Food Bank signed an agreement with the Jordanian Austrian Company to provide food items to the underprivileged. The aim of the agreement is to continue combating hunger and assist underprivileged families in local communities.
“Family Kitchen,” is a similar organization that launched during the holy month of Ramadan in 2009 by Jordanian volunteers. It began with collecting uneaten food from fine restaurants and distributing around 3,000 meals to the poor. It quickly expanded into a larger movement that packages and redistributes excess foods from top hotels, fine restaurants and bakeries as high quality meals to less fortunate families.
The project targets families in underprivileged neighborhoods with a focus on children. They work in collaboration with local charitable societies and centers, and beneficiaries are selected without religious or ethnic background discrimination, official Petra news agency reported.
The Greater Amman Municipality has also worked toward fighting hunger through the Food Bank initiative, "Kulluna Ahl". The campaign encourages shoppers at local supermarkets to purchase some food items and place them into a box. The food materials are then collected, sorted, packed, and eventually delivered to less fortunate families in Amman. — Al Arabiya News
