Ramadan: How economic crunch is changing households’ menus
As Muslims observe Ramadan worldwide, Nigeria is not left out. However, there is a major shift as many families made low budget plans for fasting amidst the rising cost of living in the country. Many also engaged in stocking foodstuff and other essentials for the period. The situation has, therefore, influenced the level of preparation; […]
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As Muslims observe Ramadan worldwide, Nigeria is not left out. However, there is a major shift as many families made low budget plans for fasting amidst the rising cost of living in the country. Many also engaged in stocking foodstuff and other essentials for the period. The situation has, therefore, influenced the level of preparation; hence, many households’ menus changed in this year’s Ramadan.
As the Muslim faithful fast during this period, families, especially wives, devote themselves to preparing varieties of nutritious foods, snacks and drinks that would keep them through the required lengthy hours.
Traditionally, to go through the Ramadan period, families stock staple foods like rice, beans, flour, as well as oil and other items used to make the pre-dawn meal (suhur), and (iftar) to break the fast.
In high demand during Ramadan are beverages such as tea, zobo, kunu, along with a range of fruit juices because they enable the body to remain energised during the day. Families also buy dates, a traditional fruit used for breaking the fast, together with sugar and milk. Also, oranges, banana and watermelon, which are famous for their thirst-quenching qualities, are a must during fasting.
Also, in anticipation of the month, some women invest in new kitchen utensils, specialised cookware and various home items, but this year, due to the economic situation in the country, many households found themselves forgoing additional purchases due to financial constraint.
Faruk Musa, the head of a family of three residing in Minna, expressed mixed feelings about this year’s Ramadan fast, noting that although the situation is manageable, the last of money is a problem.
Musa noted that while food prices have seen some decline in the market, they remain significantly high for certain essential items.
He recalled how last year, he could purchase beans for akara and for Iftar at the rate of N2,500 per mudu. This year, however price has dropped to N1,200, but there is no money to purchase items.
“Maize, for instance, to cost N1,000 last Ramadan, but now it’s going for about N700,” Musa said.
Despite these reductions, Musa’s main concern lies with the prices of vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, and onions. He lamented that these items are still expensive, with peppers now costing as much as N200 in local markets, compared to just N50 last year.
“In Minna, you can’t get pepper for less than N200 now, whereas last year it was much cheaper. The prices have not improved,” he added.
For Iftar, Musa typically prepares local dishes such as kosai, kunu, and occasionally masa, complemented by dates or fruits. However, he admitted that he does not have the means to donate meals to nearby mosques.
At Sahoor, Musa and his wife make do with leftovers from the previous night, warming them up with tea to begin their fast. As the adults in the household, he and his wife make sure the children have enough to start their day.
Musa’s main concern this year, is purchasing new clothes for his two young children for the Sallah celebrations. “My focus is now on ensuring that my children have proper Sallah clothes,” he said.
Despite the challenges, Musa remains hopeful that the spirit of Ramadan will carry his family through this trying times.
Coping mechanism
To survive the situation, families came up with innovations. While some are forming cooperative groups and contributing resources to purchase foodstuffs in bulk at wholesale prices, others are going for less expensive items as alternatives to their usual Ramadan favourites.
As most families are going for simple and affordable meals instead of complicated dishes, most people that had cultivated the habit of giving Sadaqah in the spirit of Ramadan or charity to various mosques and communities, said they resolved to focus on their immediate communities as they did not have the financial capacity to do as much as they used to.
Significance of food during Ramadan
Food occupies a key position during Ramadan, not just as a means of sustenance but also as a way to bond socially. In the same vein, iftar is a time when families get together to break their fast as a unit, occasionally asking neighbours and friends to join them, but with the present economic circumstance in the country, such communal tradition has been affected. Increasingly, only few families can afford to offer food to others as they did in the past.
“Ramadan used to be a time when we prepared additional portions of food to offer to needy individuals, but now, we are struggling to even feed ourselves,” Fatima Ibrahim, a Kano resident lamented.
A 40-year-old Amina Aminu Dodo, mother of five and resident of ‘Yan Kaba quarters in Nassarawa Local Government Area of Kano State, said she and her husband had budgeted N100,000 for the fasting period instead of the over N120, 000 they initially set aside.
She said that instead of a bag of sugar they used to buy for their consumption and distribution in their area, her family bought only four measures of sugar. She also said that instead of the 50kg rice, they resorted to buy 25kg and 10 litres of cooking oil.
“It is crystal clear that we cannot afford tea and bread anymore; therefore, we have agreed to substitute it with pap (koko or kunu) with beans cake (kosai) or pancake. Sometimes we cook spaghetti and use kunu to wash it down.
“We are thankful to God because we are managing the situation for now considering the current reduction in the prices of commodities,” she said.
For Hafsatu Musa, a 31-year-old mother of three, their budget usually increases during Ramadan. She said that with the minimum wage increase, her husband was able to increase their budget. She, however, lamented that even with the increase in the amount of money, could not buy enough items.
“Our Ramadan menu didn’t change – the usual kunu, waina and kosai are still present. However, this year is better than last year because things are somehow cheap, especially things like sugar and cooking oil. This year, we are giving out to others as well but not as much as before,” she said.
Weekend Trust reports that in the last two years, prices of essential commodities have increased tremendously, a situation that has affected households, especially during this month of Ramadan.
Fatima Muhammad Nasir, a mother of two, described how the cost of food impacted her family, saying, “In the past, we would buy all types of food items, including meat and fish, but this year, we were selective. We focused more on grains than sources of protein.”
Our correspondent observed that a full chicken that used to cost N7,000 is now N11,000, while Irish potatoes have gone beyond the reach of the common man. Even the ingredients for Ramadan drinks are no longer affordable to many families; hence the need for adjustment.
Beside the high cost of foodstuff, another problem which usually confront most fasting Muslims in Kano, especially during the hot season, is the epileptic supply of electricity, which usually results to the unavailability of ice. However, there has been an improvement in electricity supply. In the northern part of Nigeria where the weather is hot during the Ramadan period, cold drinks become necessary to ensure hydration.
Block of ice made from sachet water, which was previously sold at N300, now costs N100, while a bigger size, which was sold at N600, is now between N250 and N300. But it is anticipated that the prices would rise as the heat wave increases.
Despite the present economic challenges, majority of Muslims are optimistic that they will be sustained throughout the Ramadan period.