MACAU (UCAN): A rising number of people in Macau will need food aid by the end of this year as the city continues to grapple with economic downturns in the aftermath of the pandemic, according to Paul Pun, secretary general of Caritas Macau.
Pun said that the agency is expecting an increase in the number of applicants seeking assistance to overcome the food shortage, according to the Portuguese-language Catholic weekly Jornal O-Clarim.
Caritas, in collaboration with the Macau authorities, runs the only public food bank in the territory. It offers food aid to people who have lost jobs and means of income.
Until August this year, it offered weekly assistance to 2,959 residents. Each registered applicant received food aid equivalent to 40 Macanese patacas [$38] per day.
Pun said that the number of applicants in 2022 is “very close to what was recorded last year, which means that, most likely, we will see requests increase in the final stretch of this year.”
Food bank activities were suspended for some 90 days due to an spike in Covid-19 infections from June to July.
Pun said that the residents had managed to survive using consumption cards during the period wherein the food bank halted its operations as per government directions.
“It was the consumption card that helped them over the last few weeks and ensured their survival. These are the people who may request support from the food bank towards the end of the year, in November or December,” Pun said.
The consumption card is linked to Macau ID holders—permanent and non-permanent residents—allowing them to access government credits and grants.
Pun said that residents relying on the food bank are not necessarily in poverty.
“We do not refer to these people as being poor people. They are people with low incomes,” said Pun.
To avail of the benefits of the food bank, which is part of the Macau government’s social safety net schemes, a resident must earn less than 7,800 patacas per month [$7,544] and not have more than 39,000 patacas [$37,724] in their bank accounts.
The aid is available for 10 consecutive weeks and can be extended for another 10 weeks. A resident can avail of the benefits for a maximum of 20 weeks in a year.
The food bank weekly food baskets are distributed by Caritas Macau, among other benefits, with additional support from the Social Action Institute of the Diocese of Macau.
In May 2022, Caritas Macau reached out to hundreds of unemployed non-resident workers and provided each with 20 to 30 patacas [$19.35 to $29] per day with donations from benefactors.
