The signs and markings to keep 1.5 m away are clearly visible in the street scenes of The Hague. Passing each other on the sidewalks is often uncomfortable. If the sidewalk is too narrow, you turn to the bike path or the street. In this article we take a closer look on the neighborhood of Laak. How do corona measures change this area of the city? And how will corona times change the future of this part? Lawrence Eghosa, the City District Director of Laak, will give a few insights.

In Laak Centraal, the corona measures create tensions among vulnerable entrepreneurs and flex workers. At the same time, residents help each other, social cohesion is surprisingly strong.

“People do comply with the measures,” says Lawrence Eghosa, “but many people in the district are low-literate or do not speak the language sufficiently. They follow the foreign TV channels and must therefore be reached in a different way. That is why we work extra often with pictograms and other languages ​​in communication. ”

“The youth are also a point of attention,” says Eghosa. The houses are relatively small, study resources are not always available and the community centers and library are closed. Boredom strikes. Some young people believe that the virus will not hit them. That is why youth workers now visit the hangouts outside. They organize online football tournaments and look for other possibilities to entertain the young people inside. Just like in the rest of The Hague, there is less petty crime on the street. The police help ensure that everyone adheres to the ban on gathering.

Vulnerable neighborhoods are becoming even more vulnerable as a result of this crisis. Especially if the small self-employed people in the construction industry will also lose their jobs due to a recession, poverty will increase more and more in the future. “Additional socio-economic measures will be needed in the future,” expects Lawrence Eghosa. “We really need to build bridges between Laak Centraal and employment in the city.”

Lawrence Eghosa, City District Director of Laak

Source: https://www.platformstad.nl/nu-in-de-stad-laak-centraal/