A citizens' initiative, started on the social networks in Belgium, is aiming to bring together isolated people with volunteers available to gather and deliver essential shopping in an effort to fight the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19), a press release issued by the solidarity movement Covid-Solidarity.org explained.
"Touched by the tragic turn of events and social and economic consequences caused by the coronavirus pandemic, we wished by means of collective intelligence to serve the population through solutions involving practical support," Olivier Rousseaux, the project's initiator, explains in a press release issued on Monday.
The idea is to make shopping list templates for printing out available to people who find themselves isolated. Once completed, the list may be placed in a visible position in front of one's house so that a neighbour can pick it up and set about making the necessary purchases.
The shopping is then deposited without physical contact, and reimbursement for purchases made is handled directly by the person lending assistance and the person being assisted, according to the procedure detailed on the site.
This social network solidarity movement is being launched by Belgian businessmen and students from the tech community "BeTech."
The site had already received around a thousand hits on Monday, according to the post from the organisers on their Facebook page.
The Brussels Times
