Day against Poverty: “You simply can’t get there with a normal wage”

The skyrocketing energy prices are making it difficult for many to make ends meet. This is also the case in Bruges. Some live in the ‘Stratjie zoender ende’ because they cannot find an affordable home, can no longer pay their energy bill and have been on the waiting list for social housing for years.

They can’t wait any longer, they don’t want to live in this ‘stratjie’ anymore. Associations built a street with houses at the entrance of the Koninklijke Stadsschouwburg. With this they want to discuss housing policy. “Not a street to leisurely stroll through, but a ‘stratjie zoender ende’ in which every house expresses the bitter reality of discrimination, homelessness and sky-high energy bills.” It concerns a total of 23 houses, each decorated by an organization.

“Nothing Left”

It is extremely difficult to find affordable housing in Bruges. Demand far exceeds supply and rents are through the roof. More and more people are in danger of falling by the wayside. Amelle Ayari lives in a rented house in Sint-Kruis. She has been on a waiting list for social housing for years and the search for a house was a road with many obstacles.

“We are dealing with mold in the bathroom. There is no heating upstairs. It is a complete disaster to find a house here in Bruges that has been reasonably renovated. You will not find that here for less than 1000 euros,” says Amelle. . “You simply can’t get there with a normal wage. Well, it’s too crazy for words, to make ends meet actually. At the end of the month there is nothing left.”