IN Alexandria, in Egypt, a number of young men and women got together and launched a unique societal initiative worth copying. They started providing fruit and vegetables in supermarkets at the wholesale prices. They are not making any profit as they sell their products at their purchase price but they are at least saving poor citizens from the greed of some of the merchants. They are also helping Egyptians overcome the current wave of expensiveness being witnessed by the markets in the light of devaluation of the pound against the dollar. These volunteering initiatives are eye-catching and are worthy of appreciation and respect. I am showcasing these experiments here with the hope that Saudi teams of volunteers and welfare societies would copy them and benefit from them in their endeavors to assist the poor and needy families in a number of areas. Note that the vegetables and fruit were not given out free of charge but at their cost value without any profit. They have been provided at their cost value without any additional cost on the consumers. This is a new window which will ensure continuation and rotation of the voluntary works and assisting the financially unstable people. Our charity organizations, which are held back by their insufficient budgets and their own financial circumstances to assist the poor and needy, can adopt these ideas without losing a riyal out of their meager budgets. Promotion of welfare and voluntary work to adapt to the prevailing circumstances is a dire necessity. If one cannot do it all, at least do not lose it all. Welfare societies which are not able to provide direct cash assistance to the poor and needy families are requested to copy the experiment of the young Egyptian volunteers. They can do this through limited and seasonal marketing festivals which will create a new environment for providing the needs and requirements of the poor families at affordable prices which will definitely be less than the retail prices. I know that some charity organizations have organized similar events but they remained limited and seasonal. What we actually need is that all the charity organizations come together to establish permanent corners at malls and supermarkets for commodities at their real cost without any fringe benefits. This initiative can ensure that the poor and needy families, especially those registered with the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, satisfy their needs at the cost price. By so doing, neither the charity organizations nor the businessmen will lose any money. On the contrary they will be joining efforts to help the poor and needy people in a manner that will best preserve their dignity and honor. Let us start. Who really knows? Some businessmen may contribute to the establishment of this market where commodities are sold at their cost price. They will be putting some of their products for sale at the wholesale price not the retail ones. These businessmen and charity organizations will be really helping the needy families among us without losing a single riyal. It is true that they will not make profits but at least they will not lose and will be shouldering their responsibilities toward their society. The establishment of special corners at the existing malls and supermarkets to sell commodities at their cost price is a good idea which is worth trying. The malls and supermarkets are already there. What we actually need is specifying some places in them to sell commodities at prices which are affordable to the poor and needy.
