Tel Aviv, Feb 15, (dpa/GNA) – The Tel Aviv municipality is using free food as an incentive to encourage residents to get vaccinated against Covid-19, after a similar initiative was used in the neighbouring ultra-Orthodox city of Bnei Brak.
City Hall said on Monday that in two so-called “red” areas of the city suffering from high rates on infection and low turnout for vaccinations, residents may get food in return for a jab.
In Jaffa, where many Arab-Israelis live, the traditional Middle Eastern dishes hummus and knafeh are on offer, while residents of the Kiryat Shalom neighbourhood can enjoy pizza and a coffee.
People who show proof of vaccination and a special Tel Aviv resident card, which they can also sign up for on the spot, will receive their treats.
This follows an initiative by the “red” city of Bnei Brak where residents have been offered cholent, a stew traditionally eaten by Jews on the Sabbath, in return for getting vaccinated.
“We are determined to reduce the rate of infection in the city so that we can return to normal and open the education system, businesses and cultural institutions as soon as possible,” said Tel Aviv-Jaffa Mayor Ron Huldai.
The vaccination station in Jaffa is being operated in collaboration with the Maccabi health-care provider and is limited to its members. The station in Kiryat Shalom is being operated in partnership with the Magen David Adom emergency service and available to members of any of the country’s health-care providers.
More than a quarter of Israel’s 9.3 million citizens have received both doses of the vaccine.
GNA