The Fundación José María de Olives y de Ponsich, Conde de Torre-saura and Cáritas Diocesana de Menorca have signed a new agreement to help families and individuals on the island who are at risk of social exclusion and have limited financial resources. This agreement represents a collaboration between the two entities for the next three years, until 2027. This collaboration began in 2022 and involves an annual financial contribution from the Torre-saura Foundation for the development of Cáritas’ social integration programs.
The current agreement includes four lines of action, one more than the previous one. To begin with, Cáritas will allocate part of the amount received from the Torre-saura Foundation to aid for decent housing and other basic assistance for families in Ciutadella and Es Mercadal. Through its basic care services, the organization assists more than 600 people in these municipalities each year. They receive assistance for transportation, the purchase of school supplies, pharmaceutical products, or food, and, above all, for housing rent.
Another project in which Cáritas invests the contribution from the Torre-saura Foundation is the Cash Cards. Beneficiaries of this program receive a bank card to meet their living expenses and shop at local supermarkets and stores.
Grants for Job Training Workshops are another point included in the collaboration agreement between the Torre-saura Foundation and Cáritas. Training and social and professional reintegration are promoted through four workshops in Ciutadella. In addition, a basic course in Catering and Dining Room Service is being developed in Es Mercadal at the Ca n’Aguedet Restaurant, in which Cáritas users also participate.
Job placement is also the objective of the Cáritas Employment Program, which is also included in the collaboration agreement. People in situations of exclusion are hired by the company Mestral Inserció & Medi Ambient SLU for two years and then receive support to find work in another company.
According to the agreement, Cáritas will submit an annual report to justify that the Torre-saura Foundation’s contribution has been used for the activities described above, which will include a list of families and individuals who have been part of these projects.
The president of the Foundation, Roger Louis Joseph Zannier, entrusted the signing of the contract to the secretary of the Foundation, Ms. Blanca de Olivar Olives. Together with the director of Cáritas Diocesana de Menorca, Lorenzo Lafuente Mir, they signed the new agreement last February, after the previous one expired on December 31, 2024.
