Al Jazeera Net monitors the spending of Arab families during Ramadan

Arab Capitals-

During the month of Ramadan, Arab markets are witnessing unprecedented rises in consumer prices, which puts more pressure on families' budgets and increases their spending.

It seems that spending has doubled more this year in light of exceptional international circumstances that began with the supply chain crisis that raised food prices to record levels, and continues in light of the repercussions of Russia's war on Ukraine, which are among the largest exporters of wheat in the world and towards the Arab region.

In this joint report, prepared by Al Jazeera Net correspondents from a number of Arab capitals, we monitor by numbers the state of markets in the region, the levels of household spending during the month of Ramadan, and the solutions that these families resort to to face the high prices.

Morocco .. 40% increase in spending

In Morocco, household consumption increases by 16.3% on average during Ramadan.

Families spend more than a third on food (37%) compared to other months.

This increase in spending on food pertains to all categories of families, as it increases as the standard of living improves, and ranges between 22.5% and more than 40%, according to data from the High Commission for Planning (a government institution).

The standard of living of Moroccan families - which is measured by the average annual consumption of goods and services - in 2019 amounted to about 86 thousand and 94 dirhams, which represents 7175 dirhams per month (717.5 dollars per month), according to what was monitored by Al Jazeera Net correspondent Maryam Al Taidi.

Half of Moroccan families spend less than 67,500 dirhams per year, i.e. 5,625 dirhams per month ($562.5), (one dirham equals $0.10).

And the "Nambio" website indicates in its last update last September that the cost of living in the capital, Rabat, per month for a family of 4 people: 14,746 dirhams, excluding rent expenses.

In an interview with Al Jazeera Net, the President of the National University for Consumer Protection, Bouazza Al-Kharti, says that the cost of the month of Ramadan varies according to social class.

Al-Kharti estimated the monthly cost of food commodities between 3,000 and 7,000 dirhams ($300-700) for a family of 4 people, without calculating any other expenses such as entertainment, transportation, housing, and others.

Experts warn that high inflation rates in Tunisia will reduce the purchasing power of citizens (Al-Jazeera)

Tunisia.. inflamed prices

In Tunisia, with the constant rise in prices of foodstuffs, especially subsidized ones, the level of spending rises by more than 40% during Ramadan, according to a study by the Consumer Institute.

According to Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Amal Al-Hilali, the prices of basic materials such as eggs, poultry and olive oil have increased by more than 20%, while other subsidized materials are known to be scarce in the markets, especially flour, pastries and rice.

Experts warned of the escalation of the inflation rate, which reached 6.7% last January, and its direct impact on the purchasing power of the Tunisian citizen.

And the director of the Consumer Defense Organization, Ammar Dhia, expected - in his speech to Al Jazeera Net - that Ramadan this year will be different for Tunisian families, in light of global conditions, especially the Ukrainian war, and the already dire economic situation in the country with the rise in prices of basic commodities and energy.

He stressed that in light of the high poverty rate in Tunisia to unprecedented levels, reaching 21% of the population (4 million poor), the cost of breakfast for a simple Tunisian family of 4 people in Ramadan is not less than 30 dinars per day (about 10 dollars), Which may be difficult to achieve in this category.

(Al Jazeera)

Sudan..the price hike hits the humanitarian initiatives

In Sudan, the wave of high prices forced many charitable organizations and institutions to cancel the “Ramadan parcel” (a group of consumer goods), which was allocated to needy, poor families and orphans, and government institutions were unable to meet the needs of workers from the goods that were previously provided during Ramadan at prices discounted.

Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Muzdalifah Othman quotes Ibrahim Ali Saed, the consultant for social responsibility and organizations, as saying that the current economic conditions and the significant rise in food prices cast a shadow over the Ramadan tables, especially for families with limited and medium incomes.

He tells Al Jazeera Net that a large number of organizations and initiatives have reduced the size of food bags this year, due to the high prices and the decline in donations.

Ibrahim indicates that the price of the contents of the bag increased by nearly 100% compared to last year.

Accordingly, the cost of an Iftar and Suhoor table for the average family this year per day may reach between 5 thousand and 7 thousand pounds (a dollar is equivalent to about 600 pounds).

Volunteer activist Mujahid Basan says - to Al Jazeera Net - that the annual breakfast for about 600 fasting people for a month currently costs 14 billion pounds (31.3 million dollars), compared to 6 billion last year, which forced many voluntary fronts to cancel it.

Bassan points out that last year their voluntary organization provided 1,500 Ramadan bags, but this year it was not able to cover 500 families.

The cost of a Ramadan bag, which includes consumables for an average family, is about 23,000 pounds ($51.4), and may be consumed before the end of the holy month.

How much do Egyptians spend on food in Ramadan?

Official figures issued by Egyptian government officials indicate that the Egyptian people spend from 75 to 80 billion pounds (more than 4 billion dollars) on food during the month of Ramadan, an increase of about 25 billion pounds over the rest of the other months, according to press statements by Dr. Ibrahim El-Ashmawy. First Assistant to the Minister of Supply and Head of the Internal Trade Development Authority.

Because of the high inflation that Egypt is experiencing, the prices of all commodities, especially foodstuffs, have risen, as the price of a kilogram of chicken jumped to 42 pounds, and the lowest price for a kilogram of municipal meat reached 150 pounds (a dollar equals 18.3 pounds).

According to the data, a family of 4 people needs at least 170 pounds per day to eat breakfast and suhoor (9.2 dollars), according to figures collected by Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Ahmed Anwar.

Egyptians spend more than 4 billion dollars on food in the month of Ramadan (Al-Jazeera)

Regarding the reasons for the increase in food consumption in the month of Ramadan, economic expert Dr. Abdul-Khaleq Farouk says, "It is not an increase in the sense of an increase, but the middle class people throughout the year carry out re-rationing of their consumption in proportion to the levels of income and purchasing power that decreases every day."

Farouk adds - in exclusive statements to Al Jazeera Net - that upon entering the Holy Ramadan, the citizen begins to buy what he has been deprived of throughout the year.

Jordanian food bill rises 30%

Figures obtained by Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Ayman Fadilat indicate that the Jordanian consumer's food bill has increased since the beginning of the year by rates ranging between 20% and 30%, according to the increase in food prices locally. Experts attribute the reason for this to the fact that 85% of Jordanian food is imported from the outside.

The average annual expenditure for a Jordanian family consisting of 4 members is 12.5 thousand dinars ($ 17.6 thousand), or about 1042 dinars (about 1466 dollars) per month.

While the average income of Jordanian families is 11.5 thousand dinars (16.2 thousand dollars) - according to the Department of Statistics - which indicates that there is an annual spending deficit at a rate of one thousand dinars (1,400 dollars), and experts expect this deficit to rise due to the increase in the prices of various commodities.

The average expenditure of Jordanian families on food ranges between 35% and 50% of their income, and the lower the average per capita income, the more it spends, and it may reach 60% on food.

During the month of Ramadan, the percentage of Jordanian consumer spending on food doubles, according to economists.

This rise also coincides with a decline in the income of the Jordanian consumer as a result of the Corona crisis, at a rate estimated by official statistics between 4% and 5% on average, while there are groups affected by 50%.

The Jordanian consumer is facing these rises - according to economic analyst Hossam Ayesh - by reducing purchases, reducing the number of meals, and searching for cheaper, lower quality and low-quality goods.

Lebanon..a significant increase in the cost of breakfast

The official statistics departments and unofficial study centers have not yet determined the cost that Lebanese families will need for Iftar meals in Ramadan 2022.

However, the figures of consumer price indices in Lebanon reveal the huge costs that will fall on tens of thousands of families, especially since the historical crisis that afflicts the country has pushed about 80% of the population into the poor class, according to international estimates.

In 2022, food prices in Lebanon increased more than 21 times, compared to their prices before the economic crisis that began in the fall of 2019.

And the head of the Consumer Protection Association in Lebanon, Zuhair Berro, indicates - in his speech to Al Jazeera Net - that the rise in the price index in Lebanon, specifically in foodstuffs, reached in the first months of this year about 2100%, while in the same period of 2021 it was about 700 %.

This is related to the total lifting of subsidies on Lebanon's import of basic materials, including the food basket (with the exception of wheat).

Berro said: The Lebanese family, which used to spend about 50,000 pounds ($33) on its Ramadan meal before the crisis, needs more than 20 times the cost to provide the ingredients for the same meal, according to what Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Jana Al-Dhaibi reported.

In Ramadan 2021, the Crisis Observatory at the American University stated that the cost of an iftar, consisting of appetizers (dates, soup and salad) and a basic meal for a family of five, is estimated in Ramadan at about one million and 800,000 pounds (1190 dollars).

But at that time, the exchange rate of one dollar on the black market was 12,500 pounds, and the government was providing, through the Central Bank of Lebanon, support for the import of basic commodities, which means that the cost of breakfast in 2022 will rise more than 100% compared to last Ramadan, with the price exceeding Dollar exchange threshold 24 thousand.

Syria.. Declining purchasing power

The cost of living for a Syrian family of 5 members is estimated at about two million Syrian pounds per month (about $800), according to a research study conducted by the “Qasioun” economic newspaper affiliated with the “Popular Will” party, according to figures obtained by Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Omar Youssef.

There are no figures for spending during the month of Ramadan.

The minimum wage for workers in areas controlled by the Syrian regime is 72,000 Syrian pounds (equivalent to 30 dollars), according to the official exchange rate, and only about 20 dollars according to the exchange rate on the "black market."

In December of last year, the data of the "Nambio" index specialized in statistics showed that a family of 4 people in Syria needs about 1299 US dollars per month, only living costs, without calculating the value of the house rent.

The economic researcher Younis Al-Karim said that the increase in spending during the month of Ramadan is close to double, not related to the diversity of goods and foods for Syrian families this year, but it comes as a result of the decrease in the purchasing power of citizens and the decline in the value of the Syrian pound against the US dollar, and the exchange rate approaching 4 thousand pounds Syria for one dollar, and the rise in food prices, as a result of the regime’s lifting of subsidies on many commodities.

Al-Karim added - in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net - that the Syrian people are divided according to the family's monthly spending rate into a very poor class whose spending ranges between 150 and 200 dollars, and a middle class that spends between 200 and 400 dollars, while the rich class has no limits to its spending.

In the opposition-controlled areas, the situation is not better. According to workers in liberal professions in Idlib, the average per capita income in the opposition-controlled areas is about a thousand Turkish liras (approximately $70), while the day laborer in Idlib needs 65 days to earn the monthly cost of insurance. Basic needs, according to REACH Humanitarian Initiative reports.

85% of families in northwestern Syria depend for their material income on daily wages, and 94% of families suffer from the inability to purchase basic needs, according to reports.

Of the city's total population of 4 million, it is estimated that about 2.7 million IDPs are considered people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Most of the markets in Iraq witnessed much less movement than previous years as a result of the increase in most prices (Al-Jazeera)

Iraq..lack of local product

In Iraq, Al-Jazeera Net reporter Salam Zaidan says: Prices have risen due to global inflation and the change in the dollar exchange rate, and not allowing foreign products to enter Iraq, in addition to the lack of local product and its inability to cover internal demand.

Most of the markets witnessed much less movement than in previous years, as a result of the increase in most prices by 30%, and the salaries of employees and workers in the private sector remained unchanged.

A family of five needs between 500 and 750 dollars to buy the necessities of the holy month of Ramadan, according to economists.

Professor of Economics at the Iraqi University, Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Mashhadani, said that the spending of the Iraqi citizen during the month of Ramadan is completely different from the previous months, as food consumption increases by more than 50%.

Al Jazeera Net surveyed people's opinions in a food center in Shorja market, and merchants confirmed that the high prices were due to several reasons, including: the rise in the prices of goods globally, the change in the exchange rate of the dollar, and the high wages for external and internal transport of goods, and they cautioned that the market movement is weak. Very much compared to previous years, due to the increase in poverty and unemployment rates.

Sweets witnessed a significant increase, and Iraqis increase their spending on them significantly during the month of Ramadan, in addition to the increase in fruits and vegetables by more than 20% during the past days.

Qatar.. Discounted Goods Initiative

The volume of food spending in the State of Qatar amounts to between 1,500 and 1,800 dollars for the average family during the month of Ramadan, an increase of between 25% and 30% over other months of the year;

Due to many factors determined by the social and material situation of the family.

The State of Qatar announces annually before the month of Ramadan the initiative of the list of discounted consumer goods in Ramadan, which includes more than 800 goods, and is applied throughout the blessed month.

And economic analyst Abdul Rahim Al-Hour believes - in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net - that measuring the difference in spending in Qatar and most of the Arab country in the month of Ramadan is not in a numerical form, but in a relative form, noting that the rate of increase in Qatar reaches 25% or 30% of natural spending, Al-Jazeera Net correspondent Imad Murad also transmits.

Kuwait .. $40 for breakfast

With the approach of Ramadan, Kuwaiti families' budgets are disturbed - according to consumer behavior consultant Salah Al-Jimaz - at rates approaching 60% to 70%, and spending doubles.

The increase in food and beverages is estimated at 7.3% as an annual change, according to the report of the Central Administration of Statistics issued last February.

The average spending of an average family of 5 people on breakfast, according to the recent price increase, is estimated at about 12 dinars (about $40).

Al-Jimaz points out that traveling for Umrah, preparing to prepare homes by buying household items, especially for the kitchen and dining table, and preparing for Eid by buying clothes, especially for women and children, is one of the ways to increase spending in the month of Ramadan.

He said if the average spending is 500 dinars ($1,650) outside of Ramadan, then it is 1,000 dinars ($3,300) during the holy month.

The state of the markets in the world

Globally, food prices reached an all-time high last March, against the backdrop of the Russian war on Ukraine and the consequent obstruction of wheat and grain exports, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations "FAO".

The food index rose by 12.6% last March, compared to the level recorded in the previous February, achieving a qualitative leap to reach its highest level in 1990.

Russia is the world's largest wheat exporter, accounting for 18.4% of global exports.

As for Ukraine, it is the fifth exporter of wheat in the world, and its exports amount to 7.03% of world exports.

And there were warnings that the Russian military intervention in Ukraine would cause volatility and high food prices, which could expose the peoples of the Middle East and North Africa to “severe famine,” according to a report by the Anadolu Agency.

Food prices in the Middle East and North Africa increased to their highest levels in 10 years, reaching levels similar to those seen during the Arab Spring, according to the US Department of Agriculture.

There are 9 Arab countries that account for 22.9% of global imports of wheat, and the list of the largest importers includes: Egypt, Algeria, Morocco, Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, UAE and Tunisia. The volume of imports by these countries exceeds 40 million tons annually.