The living crisis ravages Ramadan rituals in Aden

Aden - Issa Al- Qubati

thought that he would make some money and improve his income before the month of Ramadan, but he quickly became very disappointed when this blessed month came, which he described as the most difficult during the years of the war, which entered its eighth year in Yemen.

Al-Qabati - a resident of the temporary capital of Aden - used to take advantage of Ramadan to work to transport the belongings of shoppers who are crowded in the city's markets, at such times every year as part of the Ramadan rituals that Yemenis prepare for before entering the month of fasting, and throughout its days.

Issa Al-Qubati: Ramadan this year is the most difficult over the years of the war, which has entered its eighth year in Yemen (Al-Jazeera)

Al-Qabbati, who has exceeded his thirties, was pushing a 3-wheeled rickshaw in front of him in a market in Aden, hoping to find a shopper to transport his things, but after enduring hours of intense sun, he did not imagine that the long day would pass without gaining anything.

He told Al Jazeera Net that his work on such occasions was non-stop, and the city's markets were full of life and movement, but now "there is no crowding, no work," and adds with a sigh, "The atmosphere of Ramadan has changed this year, and people's conditions have changed and their living conditions have changed."

stifling conditions

Ramadan in Yemen this year differs from previous years, as it comes in stifling economic and financial conditions that are considered the worst since the start of the war as a result of the crazy rise in food and consumer goods prices and various crises experienced by the country, most notably the crisis of oil and gas derivatives.

This year, all aspects of celebration and the usual preparations for receiving Ramadan in Aden have disappeared (Al-Jazeera)

Meanwhile, the city of Aden appears bleak and motionless, amid the absence of the manifestations of Ramadan in the city's markets, which were witnessing heavy crowds on such days, and its residents are keen to provide all their food needs for this holy month.

During the war years, the commercial movement during the Ramadan seasons gradually decreased as a result of the escalation of poverty and unemployment indicators, but this year it reached its climax in light of multiple crises that ravaged the rituals of Ramadan, and with it disappeared for the first time all aspects of celebration and the usual preparations for receiving this month.

Jawhar Amin - the owner of a spices and foodstuffs store in Aden - said that the sales movement that preceded Ramadan declined this year in an unprecedented manner compared to last year as a result of the collapse of the local currency and the crisis of oil derivatives;

This led to an increase in prices and a decrease in purchasing power.

Jawhar Amin: The sales movement that preceded Ramadan declined this year in an unprecedented way compared to last year (Al-Jazeera)

heavy expenses

There is a lot of talk in Aden about the living crisis before others, due to the insane rise in the prices of food commodities and basic materials at record rates compared to what they were last year, and at varying rates between 50 and 100%, and some of them are less in less than a year only.

The price of a bag of sugar (50 kilograms) reached 44,000 riyals, a double increase from its price last year, which amounted to 22,000 riyals (the dollar value is 1,200 riyals), as well as a bag of wheat flour (50 kilograms), whose value did not exceed 30 thousand riyals. Currently to 41 thousand riyals.

The collapse of the local currency and the crisis of oil derivatives led to a rise in prices and a decline in purchasing power (Al-Jazeera)

As for cooking oil (20 liters), its price jumped from 25 thousand to 51 thousand riyals, while the price of a kilo of dried milk (1 kg) reached 7500 riyals, after its price was 3800 riyals, and the same thing - in varying proportions - on various commodities, including Including meat and poultry, whose prices have doubled.

With the advent of the month of Ramadan, the suffering increased and the people with limited income were unable to provide basic and life commodities, and the expenses turned into an additional burden, and this month became a “heavy” visitor on the lives of many simple employees crushed between high prices and weak wages.

The wave of high prices prompted many of them to dispense with many meals that were considered essential within the Ramadan rituals in which families prepare for Ramadan, and there are others who were crippled by the inability to purchase even the minimum necessary needs in this month.

The wave of high prices prompted the Yemeni citizen to dispense with many meals that were considered essential within the Ramadan rituals (Al-Jazeera)

fabricated crises

The advent of the month of Ramadan constituted a great burden on the shoulders of the Yemeni citizen, Mansour Sufian, who works as a teacher in a government school and supports a family of five people living in Aden, with a salary not exceeding 60,000 Yemeni riyals ($50).

He told Al Jazeera Net, "Although I am a government employee, our reality has become more miserable. My monthly salary is no longer enough to buy 20 liters of cooking oil, in addition to providing the rest of the other necessary needs for Ramadan, which we could not provide."

Mansour Sufyan: This year our breakfast table is water and dates, and what is more than that is for those who are able to reach it (Al-Jazeera)

Sufian remembers with a sigh, "In Ramadan, we used to buy all kinds of food and bring all kinds of food to the iftar table, such as soup with meat (soup) and some types of sweetener such as mahlabiya, jelly, juices and others. As for this year, our breakfast table is water and dates, and what is more than that is for those who have a way." .

Malak Omar (a resident of Crater, the oldest town in Aden) believes that the crises and deteriorating conditions have turned this month into an additional burden that weighs heavily on everyone, and she deeply regrets, "Providing the requirements of Ramadan this year has become difficult to achieve."

And she adds to Al-Jazeera Net, "Ramadan comes with its spirituality, but we live through outrageous high prices and fabricated crises that have not mercy on the country or the people, such as the crisis of oil derivatives and electricity, and domestic gas we are constantly looking for, and we no longer have enough time to live the atmosphere and spirituality of this month."