Eid al-Fitr in Africa: economic struggles, conflicts dampen festive mood

As Muslims across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region prepare to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr — the Feast of Breaking the Ramadan Fast — starting from Wednesday (11 April), people in many parts of Africa are bracing for low-key festivities due to the tough economic and security challenges that their countries are going through.

Saudi Arabia, home to Islam’s holiest shrines, announced Monday (9 April) that the holiday of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan will begin on Wednesday. Eid al-Fitr is a special time of year for the nearly half of Africa’s population who are adherents of Islam. But across the continent, Ramadan festivities this year were overshadowed by numerous conflicts, including in Sudan and in Gaza. Talks on a cease-fire have resumed in Cairo but mediators have pushed in vain for a cessation of hostilities to take effect before the start of Ramadan.

The Eid al-Fitr holiday is celebrated with family reunions, new clothes, and sweet treats, but this year the celebrations will be on a low-key note for many owing to the tough economic times. People in many parts of Africa complain that they are not able to afford the usual products, including new clothes, live fowl, goats, sheep, rice, and other associated food products that they need to make their celebration a joyous one. With food inflation in Nigeria, Sudan or Ghana rising fast, governments have sought to take measures to drive down the prices of staples as the Eid al-Fitr approaches. Before Eid al-Fitr, Muslims donate a little sum of money or food to the underprivileged and needy.

The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) on Monday donated assorted food items to vulnerable families living in a refugee camp at the outskirts of Mogadishu who have been affected by conflict and the effects of climate change.