In the last few weeks, most foreign nationals who were in Bangladesh have returned home to their families with the worldwide Covid-19 situation deteriorating further.
In contrast, though, 32-year old Julia Elisa Wesemann from Germany declined to go back to her country. She was determined to help those in need as the ongoing government holiday has greatly affected the livelihoods of the country’s daily wage earners.
Wesemann, daughter of the renowned physician Dr Jan Halatek, chief doctor of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in Braunschweig, Germany, for the first time travelled to Bangladesh in 2011.
Back then, she worked as an intern for a leading NGO here.
Since the very beginning of her stay in Bangladesh, Julia Wesemann has had the urge to do something for the poor.
With that drive she and her fellow interns started a social project – with German funding – to help some homeless people in Mirpur. They helped set up several tea stalls so that these families could become financially independent.
Moreover, in 2017, she started to build a farmers' network to bring in a unique harvesting system in Bangladesh.
From then onwards she has been visiting Bangladesh at regular intervals to help and support the poor community here.
Since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak in Bangladesh, she has been supporting several families in and outside Dhaka with food aid and financial assistance.
Talking to Dhaka Tribune, Julia Wesemann said: “I like to help people. Thus I think it’s better to stay in Bangladesh than to return home amid this world crisis.
“Besides, my father has been helping my cause by providing funds from Germany.
“I have closely seen how the daily wage earners of this country, including rickshaw pullers, suffer in their efforts to sustain a normal life with their limited earnings.
“I believe that only financial aid is not a solution for the survival of these people. So I started to think differently,” she added.
“I am not afraid of coronavirus, but I am afraid of the economic consequences of these lockdowns, which can cause starvation, a general decrease in wealth, increase in inequality, and selfishness,” she said.
Meanwhile, her latest initiative, “GoodFood,” which promises to provide organic, coronavirus-safe vegetables and fruits to the consumer's doorsteps, will bring rickshaw pullers and daily wage earners to a platform that will ensure for them stable sources of earning.
One of them is 39-year old Altab, who used to pull a rickshaw in Dhaka but is now going to run this online business of safe food, which will help people like him to have a better future for themselves as well as for their families.
“My father has invested €10,000 in this business. Altab didn’t even complete his primary education but is quite fluent in English thanks to his regular visits to the German Club in Dhaka.
“He has been setting up everything for the last two weeks through various social media platforms,” Wesemann added.
When asked about the role that Julia Wesemann was playing, Altab said: “Julia is a very good human being with a pure heart. She wanted to build a dairy farm for me in my village. But due to the countrywide shutdown she has decided to start this online business.
“I am hopeful that this initiative will benefit those like me.”
“Julia likes to have long conversations with people who suffer the most in this society. She helps those in need without thinking twice,” he added.
To help this great cause and to order some fresh, organic vegetables and fruits, one can simply call GoodFood at 01400757740.
Interested people can also mail their orders to Hello.GoodFoodBD@gmail.com or can send a message to Hello.GoodFoodBD on Facebook.