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The restaurant will open at the request of the Ministry of Health, as the demand for aid is increasing steadily across Luxembourg.
The Stëmm vun der Strooss, which works for the social and professional integration of disadvantaged people, will open a restaurant in Ettelbruck after already having served meals and drinks in an outdoor setting in March. From mid-November onwards the restaurant will accommodate around thirty people.
The opening of this restaurant follows those in Luxembourg City, Esch-sur-Alzette and Sanem. More and more people are depending on the help offered by this association, and it is no longer just the homeless, but also, increasingly, people who receive the minimum wage.
Marcel Detaille, president of the Stëmm vun der Strooss, explains that whoever has only the minimum today, will have problems tomorrow. The minimum wage is no longer enough, if you add the gas bills, many citizens already spend half of their salary on rent, so they have practically nothing left to eat. This also means there could be an increase in crime because these people have lost their bearings, he adds.
With the support of the municipality of Ettelbruck, the association could quickly find a location for its newest social restaurant. Mayor Jean-Paul Schaaf applauds the initiative, stressing the importance of offering balanced and healthy meals to everyone.
Offering a two-euro packet of biscuits is not the way to help those who need it most, he continues. People in precarious situations also have the right to healthy food at lunchtime, which is exactly what the social restaurants wants to provide.
The project is expected to cost €150,000, including the renovation costs as well as the equipment. Given the ministry does not finance the entire concept, the Stëmm vun der Strooss will also rely on donations.