Her Majesty the Queen doña sofia has inaugurated this Friday in Fraga (Huesca) a temporary accommodation for temporary people and people in a situation of social exclusion, built thanks to a collaboration agreement signed by the Queen Sofía Foundation at the initiative of Her Majesty, and Cáritas Española in 2022.
The facilities will be managed by the diocesan Caritas of Barbastro-Monzón and appropriate in collaboration with the Fraga City Council. This is an innovative collaborative project whose lessons learned will serve to assess the feasibility of replicating it in other areas of Spain.
The event was also attended by the Mayor of Fraga, santiago burgos; the Bishop of Barbastro-Monzón, Angel Perez Pueyo; the president of Cáritas Española, Manuel Breton; the director of the Diocesan Caritas of Barbastro-Monzón, Amparo Tierzand the general secretary, Ana Belén Andreuamong other authorities.
housing shortage
The Aragonese region of Bajo Cinca is an area of great agricultural activity, especially during the summer months due to the fruit-picking campaigns. For years, the entire territory has had a large influx of people and a worrying shortage of housing. The Covid-19 pandemic, declared in March 2020, highlighted the situation of special vulnerability in which seasonal workers live due to the lack of adequate housing, which guarantees their safety and decent conditions.
As a result of these circumstances, Cáritas and the Fundación Reina Sofía started this innovative temporary accommodation project, which will come into operation during the spring of 2023. Initially, the facilities will accommodate 24 people, but it is expected to accommodate up to 32. The facilities have five modules, four dedicated to bedrooms and toilets and a fifth that will serve as a dining room. In addition, it has a laundry service and dining room, as well as an outdoor area with wooded areas.
The Queen Sofia Foundation has earmarked 150,000 euros for the construction of these facilities in which, in addition to providing accommodation, a social care project for these people will be developed, led by Cáritas. The Fraga City Council and Cáritas will coordinate with the social services of the region so that these accommodations can also be used in an emergency to care for people who are at risk of housing exclusion.
