Ramadan is regarding abstinence, but also regarding eating in large groups following sunset. Poor households are hit hardest by high food prices on world markets.
Amid ongoing food shortages and high prices, Muslims around the world have begun their week-long fast on the first day of Ramadan. In Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, among others, Thursday was declared the first day of the month of fasting. The date depends on the appearance of the new crescent moon and can therefore vary slightly from country to country.
Many people, including in countries in the Arab world, continue to suffer from the sharp rise in food prices on the world markets. One reason for this is the Russian war of aggression that has been going on for more than a year Ukraine. Grain prices in particular have risen sharply.
No eating, drinking, smoking and sex in daylight
During Ramadan, devout Muslims abstain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex for a month from dawn to dusk. In the evening, people traditionally meet to break the fast together. Many spend this time with their families and eating in large groups. Because of the high food prices, poorer households will find it difficult, as in the previous year, to host the evening Iftar.
“The combination of high food price inflation, collapsing currencies and stagnant incomes makes it impossible for families to put food on the table,” said economist Arif Hussain of the UN World Food Program (WFP). The inflation rate for food is particularly high in Lebanon at 138 percent and in Syria at 105 percent.
In Egypt, special markets are said to offer cheap food for Iftar celebrations
The high prices also affect people in Egypt, with more than 105 million inhabitants the most populous country in the Arab world. As a countermeasure, the government opened the special markets, which offer discounted food before the start of Ramadan, three months earlier than usual. According to a study by the US research institute IFPRI, 85 percent of the households surveyed in Egypt said that since the beginning of the Ukraine-War to eat less meat. 75 percent said they were eating less chicken and eggs.
It is estimated that there are around 1.9 billion Muslims worldwide. Most of them live in Indonesia, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The two holiest sites in Islam, Mecca and Medina, are in Saudi Arabia.
(APA/dpa)
