Advertising agency launches NFT campaign to free jailed Egyptian women unable to repay loans

According to a report by Unlock Media, over 10,000 of women known as ‘Al Gharemaat’ or ‘The Fined’ are jailed for being unable to repay loans and being in debt. To address this, the UAE-based advertising agency Horizon FCB partnered with Children of Female Prisoners Association (CFPA) launched an NFT campaign that seeks to raise funds for these women, with some of the funds already being used to pay their debts and free the jailed women.

FCB and CFPA’s campaign ‘Breakchains with Blockchain’ is a project that works with imprisoned women and their children whose debts are no more than a few hundred dollars. The women borrow money to pay for essentials including medicine, emergencies, raise their children and help them achieve financial independence. Each NFT is designed by artists across the globe and costs the amount to bail them out of jail. The NFTs tell stories of the imprisoned women.

FCB’s general manager, Reham Mufleh, explained the rationale behind Horizon FCB’s decision to help. Mufleh said:

“We created and launched a humane initiative, Breakchains with Blockchain, inspired by the reasons for their imprisonment. We created in collaboration with artists from around the world, NFTs. Each is designed to tell a woman’s story, the story of why she was sentenced. Each NFT is priced at the amount it will cost to free them from their sentence and give them a second chance at life.”

Beyond raising funds with their NFTs, Horizon FCB and CFPA are also using NFTs to raise awareness of the plight of these jailed women. Since the campaign was launched on Egyptian mother’s day, March 21, three Egyptian women have been freed from jail and reunited with their families as ‘Breakchains with Blockchain’ helped pay off their debts. 

Photo: Breakingchains with Blockchain