In my previous article, I explained why the Support Project is important:
- It is the most serious and systematic effort to prevent waste.
- It provides those in need with the opportunity to shop at a high-standard supermarket, meeting their basic needs, such as food, cleaning products, and clothing, in a way befitting human dignity.
- Most importantly, the association’s core mission is to empower people to become self-sufficient. This is achieved through the vocational training programs provided by Support Human Resources (Support HR) in cities (TIDER will continue its rural development projects in other locations outside the city after completing and transferring the Yırca project).
In my previous article, I touched on the ‘waste’ issue that the Support Project addresses and explained the methodology it employs to prevent waste.
In this article, I will inform you about the in-kind aid we provide. Let me begin with a story.
Towards the end of last year, Nestlé donated 90,000 chocolates to us. Of course, we had to consume these wonderful chocolates quickly. This wouldn’t have been possible by simply putting it in the market. We made a quick decision, and through the Maltepe District Education Directorate, over 90 schools across the district were contacted, and these chocolates were distributed to them based on their size. The chocolates were consumed within a week.
During the distribution, I also went to two schools to inspect them. At one school, the principal welcomed us into his office before the distribution. I handed him my business card. He looked at my card, read the inscription (H. Serhan Süzer, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Basic Needs Association), and then the principal began speaking. The following exchange ensued:
- Hmmm, Basic Needs Association, huh? What is this basic need?
- (I thought to myself, “Oh, we’re entering dangerous territory. I’d better pass the buck.”) What do you think?
- I think it’s a house, a car, things like that.
- We believe that basic needs take precedence over homes and cars. For example, food, clothing, heating, and cleaning products. Essentially, the most basic need here is for people to stand on their own two feet and start producing something. We also have vocational training programs for this purpose.
- Interesting, this is the first time I’ve heard of your association.
- You’ll hear more about us in the future. We will continue to do everything we can for our country.
- We’ll see, we’ll see.
Free heating and electricity support is also on the way…
After finishing our tea in the principal’s office, we went down to the children and distributed the chocolates one by one. I can’t describe the expressions on those children’s faces as they ate the delicious chocolates. Their incredibly joyful expressions brought me joy, too.
We’re currently distributing food, cleaning products, and clothing at the Support Market. We’ll also begin providing heating assistance in the future. And of course, since I work professionally in the renewable energy sector, we’ll bring free electricity to the homes of those in need. We’ll do this by installing a micro-solar power plant (SPP). I’d like to share some good news.
Now, let’s recap how the system works:
The Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundation, affiliated with the Maltepe District Governorate, identifies those in need in the district. They visit individuals who apply for assistance, evaluate them based on their own criteria (for example, how many people work in the family, whether anyone works at home, whether the family owns a house or a car), and then allocate a limit to the family based on the family’s needs (for example, how many people live there).
Women are typically chosen to represent the family, and a text message is sent to the representative’s mobile phone. The message is transmitted as follows:
“You have a 150 TL limit at the Support Market this month.”
The family representative receives this message and goes to the Support Market and shows the representative at the register their mobile phone number and their ID card, which includes their Turkish ID number. The representative at the register matches this information in our system and, after identifying the family’s record, tells the representative: “Dear ma’am/sir, you can start shopping. You have a limit of 150 TL. However, before you start shopping, please visit our Human Resources desk first.”
Scenes from inside the Support Market.
The family visits the Human Resources desk, located right next to the cash register, and then, as they would with a regular grocery store, they select whatever they need from the market and fill their basket. For example, if they buy rice for 2 TL or pasta for 3 TL, this amount is deducted from their 150 TL limit.
Because shopping at Destek Market is a closed-loop system, no cash is accepted. We call it Turkish Lira, but that’s purely out of habit. We also call it TIDER Lira. In other words, ordinary banknotes are not accepted here; these amounts are simply deducted from their limit. If you’d like to explore all this in more detail, I recommend checking out our association’s website. The relevant link explaining Destek Market is: http://www.tider.org/destek-market
We understand that the supermarket we opened has high standards and is successful; occasionally, uninformed shoppers enter, eager to shop. We explain that Destek Market isn’t a supermarket we know, but that it works solely to help those in need, and we decline their requests.
Impartial, transparent, honest, and sustainable
One of the questions we’re most frequently asked is whether those in need are being identified correctly. I must say that the Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundation (SYDV), affiliated with the Maltepe District Governorate, has done a great job here. So far, we’ve identified only two or three well-off families among the more than 4,000 families who have received our assistance. For instance, some arrived by car to collect the aid. We immediately reported these to the SYDV and had them removed from the list. Sometimes, some people deceive the Foundation, for example, by presenting an empty, unused, rundown flat instead of their own home.
In such cases, we, the Basic Needs Association, are the guarantors. If we detect even the slightest error, we immediately intervene.
What matters to us is that in-kind assistance is provided to those in need in an impartial, transparent, honest, and sustainable manner.
We say impartial because, for us, it doesn’t matter where the needy comes from, what their faith is, or what their identity is. For us, people are people, and what matters is that their basic needs are met in a manner befitting human dignity.
Let me answer another question we frequently receive on this topic. Yes, we also assist Syrian citizens. Syrians registered with the Maltepe District Governor’s Office make up about 10% of the total number of people in need we assist. This percentage will likely be higher in other districts.
Transparency is also a principle we place great importance on. Today, we can instantly and individually identify which people in need have purchased which products. Our accounts are open and transparent. That’s why we are also members of the Open Open Platform. To see details about our association, please visit https://acikacik.org/sivil-toplum-kurulusu/tider.
Honesty is a principle we constantly emphasize to our employees. We do our utmost to maintain an honest relationship with those in need and all the institutions and organizations that support us. Trust is the foundation of everything, and honesty is essential for this.
Finally, we ensure that all our models are sustainable. We do our utmost to ensure that both the evaluation of the donations we receive, and our employment efforts are sustainable, meaning they are uninterrupted and constantly self-renewing. Finally, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the institutions and organizations that have contributed to us, that have contributed, and that will continue to contribute. I would like to share their names here:
From the private sector: Carrefour, Cargill, Barilla, Nestle, Evyap, Unilever, Omsan, Kellogg’s, Komşufırın, Modelez, Sodexo, Tafe, Banvit, Gen3 Creative, g2m, Metro, EkoRE, Moka, and EkoCC.
From the public sector and NGOs: Maltepe District Governorship, TÜROB (Hoteliers Association of Turkey), İncivak (Cevdet İnci Education Foundation), GFN (Global Foodbanking Network), and FEBA (European Federation of Foodbanks).
Without their support, we would not be able to provide this assistance to thousands of people. Thank you and be there for us.
Announcement to those who wish to join us at the Istanbul Marathon: We have entered the last week of registration.
The number of supporters at the Istanbul Marathon has surpassed 170. Cargill, Net Holding, Procat, EkoRE and EkoCC are the corporate companies that will support us in the race.
A frame from the corporate shoot we made with Procat for the Adım Adım platform.
Do you want to participate in the Istanbul Marathon and support our campaign?
A picture we took with our supporters after training at Adım Adım’s Maçka event. Everyone is very motivated. Thank you for sticking with us.
I previously wrote that registration for the Istanbul Marathon has been extended to October 15th. Those who would like to support us can register for the Istanbul Marathon at http://www.istanbulmarathon.org/ , then log in to the Goodness Pursuit Run (İPK) Platform and select TIDER in İPK. We’re entering the last week of registration. If you’re still interested, please hurry. I’d like to share with you the ‘challenge for the run’ video from Mercan, our sweetest supporter in the run:
https://www.facebook.com/919301451507702/videos/954463381324842/
In my next article, I’ll address the most critical wound our ointment heals: unemployment. In other words, it allows our people to stand on their own two feet, free from dependence on anything, including the Support Market. This constitutes the core mission of our Association. Stay well and take care.
