Caritas Diocesana de Bilbao, EROSKI and Empleo Kutxa renew their commitment to people in situation or risk of social exclusion, who lack the necessary resources to cover their basic needs. To this end, the cooperation agreement signed for the first time in 2009 is renewed for another year.

Through this agreement, EROSKI undertakes to provide the operational structure for the operation of the “purchase cards” and to transfer to Caritas the contributions collected for the project “Help to families at risk of social exclusion” of its Solidarity Pennies program.

In addition to an economic contribution, EMPLEO Kutxa will provide the banking structure to the project. For its part, the collaboration of Caritas Diocesana of Bilbao will consist in social intervention with the beneficiaries and in the assignment of the “purchase cards” to the families that correspond.

The main objective of this project is to provide access to basic consumer products through ‘standardised’ circuits to families served by Caritas Bizkaia who lack sufficient resources. Since its implementation in 2009, it seeks to normalize access to basic needs not only from a care perspective, but also from an integrative perspective, framed in broader processes of social incorporation for people in situation or risk of exclusion.

Procedure of delivery

The delivery and control of the purchase cards follow a collaborative process between the parties involved. Caritas Bizkaia will be responsible for collecting information on the situation of people or families who request help in their shelters, to determine if they comply with the established requirements. Once the applications have been collected and the aid granted by the volunteer teams, a social worker will accompany the whole process to ensure the proper functioning of the initiative. EROSKI will activate the cards automatically, linking them and allocating the corresponding amount to each beneficiary.

The amount of the aid is determined according to the number of members of the family unit: 130 euros for families of 1 or 2 adults and 200 euros for families of 1 or 2 adults with minors. The duration of the aid will be from 1 to 6 months, with monthly refills on the card. Exceptionally, the aid may be given on a different basis, depending on the assessment of the situation of the person or family.

The cards may be redeemed exclusively for products of primary need, both food and basic hygiene, excluding all other products.

Caritas Diocesan of Bilbao

Caritas Diocesan of Bilbao is a Church organization with its own legal personality, which works with the most needy people in our society through various promotion programs. Faced with the growing problem of social exclusion in the province of Bizkaia, Caritas collaborates with Public Administrations and other Institutions to contribute to its eradication.

About EROSKI

EROSKI is one of the leading distribution groups in the north of the Spanish market — from Galicia to the Balearic Islands — with a market share of 12.7% in that area; being a leader in the Basque Country, Navarre, and Galicia and co-leader in the Balearic Islands. Its commercial network, at the end of 2024, rises to 1,502 establishments, including supermarkets, hypermarkets, cash & carry and online supermarkets; in addition to gas stations, sports stores and other non-food businesses. It also has more than 6.4 million Client Partners and more than 27,600 people are part of its workforce, of which about 9,000 are proprietary partners.