Elderly Moroccan Immigrant Trapped in Tiny 9m² Apartment for Over a Decade in Montpellier

Madhi B., now retired and holder of a master’s degree in physical chemistry, arrived in France in 1975 to continue his studies in Montpellier. He was housed in this premises by a social welfare association, with the owner’s agreement. Today, he feels increasingly diminished and cannot leave his current accommodation due to the high prices in the real estate market.

In this poorly insulated and poorly equipped accommodation, Madhi suffers from difficult living conditions: "in summer it’s too hot, in winter it’s too cold, there’s a draft that’s always coming in through the front door," he explains to France 3. He has no office, uses a small restaurant table as a "makeshift" and the roller shutter remains half-closed, preventing him from accessing his balcony. He only has two small electric hotplates to feed himself and has to go out to eat.

Pending a prefectural order for "unhealthiness", the members of the ADLH platform are trying to help the Moroccan find decent housing.