CairoFamilies in Egypt did not abandon the ritual of sacrifice, despite the rise in the prices of sacrifices after the devaluation of the pound by about 60% last March. Rather, many of them resorted to alternative solutions to reduce the financial burden and continue performing the religious ritual.
These alternatives, which emerged with the economic crisis that has been going on for years, show the extent of Egyptians’ eagerness to commit to performing the religious ritual and the desire to help those in need at the same time, and allow those who wish to participate in this important ritual in easy and innovative ways.
What happened to the local livestock?
The head of the Butchers Division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, Mohamed Wahba, says that the prices of the most popular sacrificial animals of cows and sheep “increased about 20% compared to last year, and the average price per kilogram of beef calves reached 175 pounds ($3.7), and the average price per kilogram of sheep reached 175 pounds ($3.7). Municipal 210 pounds ($4.5), which led to a decline in buying and selling activity by 50%.”
He added in an interview with Al Jazeera Net that Egypt relies heavily on importing livestock breeds from abroad, which has led to a significant decline in the numbers of local or “baladi” breeds, which are distinguished by their ability to adapt to Egyptian climatic conditions, but the lack of government support and encouragement has led to Her upbringing declined.
Wahba pointed out that the increase in the prices of sacrifices occurred for the following reasons:
- The decline in animal husbandry and the decrease in the number of breeders as a result of the high costs of breeding. This decrease led to a reduction in the supply of livestock in the market.
- Lack of fodder cultivation, as the areas of land allocated for fodder cultivation have shrunk as a result of the shift to growing more profitable commercial crops, leading to a severe shortage of fodder.
- The shortage of fodder and the increase in its prices negatively affected the cost of raising livestock, which was reflected in the prices of sacrificial animals.
- Increased dependence on foreign livestock, which increased prices, due to exchange rate fluctuations and high transportation and shipping costs.
Alternatives through charities
One of the latest alternatives for Egyptians to offer sacrifices is to perform the ritual through charitable institutions that operate in a number of countries on the African continent in light of the high prices and as one of the innovative solutions to reduce the financial burden.
The supervisor at the Al-Khair Humanitarian Foundation in Africa, Ibrahim Al-Adawi, says, “With the significant increase in the prices of sacrifices in Egypt, some Egyptians have resorted to buying sacrifices from African countries suffering from difficult economic conditions and a weak local currency, such as Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia, and others.”
These sacrifices, according to what Al-Adawi told Al Jazeera Net, are usually less expensive, and this is done through cooperation with charitable institutions that buy sacrifices in those countries, slaughter them, and distribute their meat to the needy.
He added that this option not only reduces the financial burden on Egyptians, but also contributes to supporting poor African communities.
Regarding the prices of sacrifices, he explained that the average price of a sheep is 2,200 pounds (about 46 dollars), compared to about 8,500 pounds (about 180 dollars) for the municipal (local) alternative, and the average price of calves is 22 thousand pounds (about 470 dollars), compared to about 72 thousand pounds (about 1,500). dollars) for the local alternative, for two reasons: the first is the weak local currency (in African countries), and the second is the abundance of fertile pastures and the large local livestock.
The association gives the owner of the sacrifice the opportunity to see his sacrifice, slaughter it, and distribute it by documenting the process through a video that is sent to him either directly or sent later, and mentioning his name on the sacrifice before it is slaughtered so that it can be confirmed that the ritual has been performed.
Despite the decline in prices, the effects of the recent economic conditions in Egypt did not help much in increasing the demand for African sacrifices, according to the Al-Khair Humanitarian Foundation, but it did not witness a decline as happened in the local market.
deprivation
Citizens who used to sacrifice every year and distribute meat to the poor and needy say that the increase in the prices of sacrifices has exceeded the ability of many Egyptian families to purchase sacrifices, which has led to a decrease in the number of those wishing to perform the sacrifice ritual this year.
One of them was engineer Mohamed Sharif, who told Al Jazeera Net: “We are in a stage of austerity and saving. Many families were forced to cut back on their expenses, which affected their daily lifestyle, and thus reduced the number of sacrifices available for distribution to the poor. It also negatively affected the ability of These poor people are able to benefit from sacrificial meat during Eid al-Adha.”
He adds that two or three years ago, a quarter of a cow or buffalo calf was worth no more than 5 thousand pounds, and its weight was about 95 kilograms and the net weight was about 50 kilograms, but now the deed in charitable societies and institutions is about 13 thousand pounds and weighs only about 16 kilograms.
Ultimately, the increase in the prices of sacrifices in Egypt is the result of the intersection of a group of agricultural, economic, and logistical factors. This increase did not only affect the ability of Egyptians to purchase sacrifices and adhere to religious rituals, but rather its effects extended to include the poor who depend to obtain meat on what is distributed. .
