Buenos Aires (AFP)
The sale of an Argentine national team jersey bearing the signature of Diego Maradona has raised money for a disadvantaged area on the outskirts of Buenos Aires affected by the quarantine imposed due to the new coronavirus.
"We're going to get by," wrote Maradona on this jersey, a replica of the one used during the 1986 World Cup won by the Albiceleste. The jersey was initially offered at auction, but will ultimately be awarded by lot among those who have offered more than the amount of the initial donation to participate.
The initiative made it possible to collect a hundred kilos of food as well as hygiene products and protective masks against Covid-19 for the benefit of the inhabitants of the Favaloro district.
"Diego does not even imagine what he did for us, it is priceless. I will be grateful to him until the day of my death", exclaimed a resident of the district, Marta Gutierrez .
After 50 days of quarantine to stop the spread of Covid-19, poverty, which already affected 35.5% of Argentines at the end of 2019, has worsened, recognized the Minister of Social Development, Daniel Arroyo.
According to data from his ministry, some 8,000 tonnes of food are distributed each month, half of what social organizations estimate is necessary to ensure the functioning of canteens, which benefit around 500,000 children daily.
In addition to the pandemic, Argentina is facing a serious economic and financial crisis and is engaged in painstaking negotiations on a debt restructuring with creditors.
© 2020 AFP