The cash-strapped Argentine treasury is donating 1.6 million kilograms of mate to its poorest section of the population. A nice gesture at a difficult time.
An elderly man drinks mate tea from a clay pot.
(dpa) Mate tea is a constant companion for many Argentines and it is hard to imagine everyday life without it: because of the economic crisis, the government in Buenos Aires is now spending millions to supply the poorest sections of the population in the South American country with mate tea.
For almost 650 million pesos (5.3 million Swiss francs) they will buy 1.6 million kilograms of mate for poor Argentines, the government said on Tuesday in the official gazette.
Mate is traditionally poured with hot water in a gourd and drunk through a metal straw. Mate is often passed around and shared among friends and family.
According to the National Mate Institute, 90 percent of Argentinian households drink mate, with a per capita consumption of 6.4 kilos per year. In Germany Mate is mainly known for the soft drink Club-Mate.
Argentina is in a severe economic crisis. The inflation rate is over 50 percent. Around 37 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. The left-wing government recently tried to ease the burden on poor Argentines with subsidies and freezing the prices of certain foods.