The cost of living problems also changes the cost of Eid in Nigeria | Business and Financial Issues

Abuja, Nigeria – Sitting on a plastic chair inside his madrassa in Abuja, Yunus Akanji listens to children reciting verses from the Holy Quran in soft and clear voices. Some sat on mats, others on long wooden benches.

The Muslim teacher would sometimes correct the pronunciation or repeat a line, but his mind stopped.

For many years, Akanji, who teaches at the Nurul Bayan Islamic School, used to travel with his wife and children to Saki in Oyo state to reunite with his relatives on Eid al-Adha, commonly called Sallah in Nigeria.

When he was not making the trip, he was buying an Eid ram and holding a small celebration with his family and students.

This year, nothing is happening.

“I’m sure we’ll just celebrate with everything we have,” he told Al Jazeera.

The annual Muslim festival, marked by public prayers and animal sacrifices, is approaching amid Nigeria’s economic crisis.

In Abuja, the rising cost of food and transport is quietly changing the number of families preparing for Eid.

There is no journey home

Akanji said even parents and community members who usually support his madrassa are suffering.

“Many of them didn’t pay at all,” he said, referring to the tuition fees that help support the school and his family.

Stress is not limited to the classroom. It can be seen in bus stops, in markets, and in the small calculations that people make before deciding whether to walk or stay.

Nafisa Ibrahim from Ogun, who is currently in Abuja doing a one-year mandatory program for graduates of the National Youth Service Corps, said she has canceled her plans to go home for Eid. Travel expenses alone made it impossible.

There is no guarantee that his family will be able to slaughter animals this year.

“Transport is about 35,000 naira (about $26), compared to the 15,000 naira (about $11) I paid when I arrived in Abuja in February,” he said.

Opeyemi Ibrahim, a fashion designer based in Byazhin District, said that customer care has dropped significantly even as the celebrations are approaching.

He said that the increase in the price of fuel and the lack of electricity has made him spend more money.

“When there is no electricity, we have to run a generator,” he said. “Filling it costs about 10,000 naira ($7).

But without it, the shop gets too hot, and we still need energy to iron the customers’ clothes.”

Inside the Big Pet Market

At the livestock market in Kubwa, the problems are visible before anyone can speak. Men stand beside rams tied to poles. Buyers move from animal to animal, ask a few questions, and then leave.

Malam Ibrahim, a pet seller who has been in the business for many years, sat next to the food, watching many of his customers leave empty-handed.

He said: “People come to ask for prices and leave.”

He pointed to a ram nearby, with black and white markings on its body.

“This ram is being sold for 600,000 naira (about $438),” he said. Last year, the same growth was below 350,000 naira ($255).”

Importing meat from northern Nigeria, Sokoto, Kaduna and beyond, has become expensive. Fuel prices, transportation, everything depends on the final price.

“Even retailers are struggling,” Ibrahim said. If the sale is slow, they are worried that the animals will not be sold after Eid, when their prices will drop significantly. “We don’t pray to return home, but from the looks of things, I’m afraid,” he said.

Few things about Eid

A woman who came to buy two rams was left with only one.

Inflation has been stagnant in Nigeria for many years now, but what most people feel is the difference between inflation and stagnant money. The naira may seem more stable against the United States dollar than last year, traders say, but moving goods across the country costs more every month.

At the market in Kubwa village, buyers were moving, but few stopped to buy.

Vendors selling tomatoes, onions, rice and cooking oil say sales are slower than usual, and many families are cutting back even on festive meals.

“We used to celebrate Eid with joy,” a trader said quietly. “Now we just have to calculate what we can afford.”