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I was wondering if you - who live in Egypt - already felt a drastic increase of prices for basic food items just before Ramadan is about to start.
Here is a topic of last year in regards to the same issue:
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Ramadan begins under the shadow of new price hikes
Ramadan, a holy month of dawn-to-dusk fasting, festivities and family reunions, begins in Egypt today. The start of Ramadan, the ninth and one of the holiest month in the Muslim calendar, is traditionally determined by the sighting of a new crescent moon. Libya began observing Ramadan yesterday.
In Egypt, the Arab world's most populous Muslim country, Ramadan has begun under the shadow of new price hikes of basic commodities.In Cairo, a traditional shopping frenzy was slow yesterday due to soaring prices, as the residents prepared for the first day of Ramadan where extended families break the fast with a big Iftar (a fast-breaking meal) that usually consists of meat, vegetables, rice and cooked dessert.On Saturday night, the market of the densely populated area of Ain Shams in eastern Cairo has been bustling with shoppers stocking up on small amounts of poultry, rice, macaroni, sugar, tea and legumes, whose prices soared immediately after Egypt's top Muslim authority announced that the holy month would start today."We can ill-afford beef and chicken prices," says Mona Fathi, a housewife and mother of two children.On Saturday night, the price of beef has reached LE35 ($6.5) per kilo after it was LE29, and the price of a small chicken has become LE25 after it was LE16.5, Mona said, complaining that her household budget has been ruined by these price increases.“The country's poor will abstain from eating meat during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan when prices traditionally rise,” she said.In some nearby plush areas like Heliopolis and Madinat Nasr, the price of one kilo of beef has jumped to LE50.The Government's efforts have apparently failed to bring food prices down, Ibtssam Abdul Kader, another housewife, complains. In Early August, the Government of Ahmed Nazif announced that it would exert more efforts to stabilise prices in a bid to help poor families who are struggling to make ends meet."The aim of these efforts is to protect the country's poor from any price rise during Ramadan when some rogue traders hike commodity prices. We hope it will rein in soaring prices of the staples in the market," the Cabinet spokesman Magdi Radi has said."These efforts are proving to be futile because the price of one kilo of milk has reached LE5, and the price of one egg exceeds 70 piastres after it was 50 piastres two days ago, and the price of yoghourt jumped from 90 piastres to LE1.10 just on Saturday night," Ibtssam, a mother of three children, said."These are basic components of the sohur (the pre-dawn meal) which the faithful eat. So, how about the costs of the Iftar meal?" she asked, swearing that fuul (fava beans) shops in the Ain Shams neighbourhood have decided not to sell any portion of stewed beans less than LE1.Fuul is a main staple in the sohur and iftar meals for poor families."A portion of stewed fuul worth LE1 is not even enough for a child," she said.Magdi Mahmoud, a mechanic, said that the prices of basic foods and dairy products were going up like crazy and the middle class and poor people were unable to catch up with them.Ali Sayyed, a retired employee, demanded that the Government should strike rogue traders with an iron fist and that the authorities concerned must monitor market prices during the holy month.Sayyed said that he was shocked to know that the state-run and privately owned studios wasted LE500 million on producing TV soap operas to be shown in Ramadan, and that they did not spend a small fraction of this huge amount of money on helping the poor enjoy a decent meal during this holy month.
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Egyptians struggle to cobble together Ramadan meals amid rising prices
By Agence France Presse (AFP)
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
by Maya El Kaliouby
Agence France Presse
CAIRO: Sitting next to his rickety stall stacked high with seasonal plastic lanterns, a toothy-grinned Am Ahmad waits for a customer at the start of Ramadan, which in Egypt this year is looking pretty bleak. "It's not like it used to be, there are fewer customers. Before, people bought things without counting. Now, they are very careful," he sighs.
There are plenty of goods on this shopping street in Cairo's crowded Sayyeda Zeinab district: dates, nuts, raisins and the renowned fannous lanterns are all here in great quantities. But the clients are not.
Egypt in July broke yet another inflation record, hitting 23 percent year-on-year with the price of certain staples up more than 70 percent.
"Prices have gone up 50 percent since last year," says another stall owner, Zeinab, whose stall nevertheless seems to have more business than most. "Ramadan is supposed to be a joyful month, but this year everything is too expensive. People can't take it any more."
Customers buy in smaller quantities "because, after all, they have to invite their relatives round," she says, referring to the traditional iftar meals with which the Muslim faithful break their fast at sunset with friends and family.
"It's unbelievable. It can't last. There's too much pressure," says Hassan, a 30-year-old engineer with a family. "For me, Ramadan has become a burden. I try to be happy but my heart is not in it."
Dried dates, a particularly popular delicacy traditionally consumed by Muslims because the Prophet Mohammad broke his fast with dates and some milk, are especially expensive.
"Dates are expensive because this year the harvest hasn't been completed," says a trader.
Since Islam uses the lunar calendar, the season in which Ramadan falls changes slightly each year, affecting the length of people's dawn-to-dusk fast, the temperatures they must endure and the price of seasonal fruit.
The cost of raisins has hit 21 Egyptian pounds (about $4) a kilogram, dates are between 5 and 8 pounds a kilogram, while a kilogram of coconut powder costs 18 pounds.
The total cost is simply too much for many in a country where some 44 percent of the population lives at or below the poverty level of $2 a day.
Skyrocketing prices and persistently low wages have led to a wave of strikes and protests this year, including riots in April in the Nile Delta city of Mahalla. Three people were killed during the unrest, dozens were hurt and hundreds were arrested.
However, Diaa Rashwan of Al-Ahram Center for Strategic Studies says the risk of social unrest diminishes sharply during Ramadan.
"Social troubles never arise during Ramadan. People hold themselves back and wait because that's part of their deepest belief system," he says.
While no protests or riots are expected during Ramadan, the atmosphere is glum for customers and shopkeepers alike. The rising food costs for many Egyptian families will only be complimented by high school costs for the upcoming academic year.
Am Ahmad is still waiting for a customer. "If I could just sell two lanterns for a pound ($0.25 cents) each then I could buy a meal for my family," he says.
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