IVORY COAST: Ivorian Muslims hope high food prices won't dampen Ramadan celebrations

Record ID: 182341

  • Title: IVORY COAST: Ivorian Muslims hope high food prices won't dampen Ramadan celebrations
  • Date: 10th July 2013
  • Summary: ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST (JULY 07, 2013) (REUTERS) STREET SCENES/ TWO MUSLIM MEN WALKING IN STREETS VARIOUS OF MARKET SCENES/ MARKET TRADERS ONIONS FISH ON SALE AT FISH MARKET MORE OF PEOPLE IN THE STREET, SOME CARRYING SHOPPING BAGS (SOUNDBITE) (French) BABANAN SALAY, ABIDJAN RESIDENT, SAYING: "It's a time when we need to share with our brothers, and everyone else. We need to maintain good relations amongst different people, weather they are Muslim or Christian, during Ramadan, you need to share with everyone." TAILORS WORKING OUTSIDE THEIR WORKSHOP VARIOUS OF FOFANA LOSSENI, TAILOR WORKING ON SEWING MACHINE (SOUNDBITE) (French) FOFANA LOSSENI, TAILOR, SAYING: "No one is married amongst my group of friends, so in order to bring down food cost during Ramadan, we arrange it amongst ourselves. We are all brothers, and we come together to help each other. Because we know that Ramadan is coming, food prices go up, so we come together to find ways to make food less expensive." EXTERIOR OF SUPER MARKET VARIOUS OF INTERIOR OF SUPERMARKET/PRODUCTS ON DISPLAY/POSTERS READING IN FRENCH; "HAPPY RAMADAN" VARIOUS OF COOKING OIL AND DATES ON DISPLAY VARIOUS OF CUSTOMERS WALKING IN SUPERMARKET/ SUPERMARKET SUPERVISOR, CHRISTOPHE AYI LOOKING AT HIS PHONE COOKING OIL ON SALE (SOUNDBITE) (French) CHRISTOPHE AYI, SUPERMARKET SUPERVISOR, SAYING: " We have planned a special sales campaign, that we have called operation Ramadan. In the course of this operation, we have many products on offer. As you can see, we have Tunisian dates, you can see cooking oil, milk, sugar, and other products that are usually widely consumed during Ramadan." VARIOUS OF BOXES OF SUGAR, WITH HAPPY RAMADAN WRITTEN ON THEM SUPERMARKET ATTENDANT ASSISTING A CUSTOMER VARIOUS OF ABIDJAN RESIDENT NANAN BOUBACAR COOKING AT HOME MORE OF STREET SCENES
  • Embargoed: 25th July 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Cote d'Ivoire
  • Country: Ivory Coast
  • Topics: General,Economy,Religion
  • Reuters ID: LVA1TDJRX5G2FM3OZOWS5Z4AAWJV
  • Story Text: As Muslims around the world begin fasting for the holy month of Ramadan, many in Ivory Coast are stocking up on food and treats for their iftar meals at sunset.
    But in recent years, many muslims in the country have been complaining about increasing food prices and some are worried that they'll see the same thing happening again this year.
    Despite Ivory Coast's inflation being 3.4 percent in May, figures from the National Statistics Institute showed that food and soft drinks prices jumped 3 percent in the same month.
    The world's top cocoa producer is emerging from a decade-long political crisis that ended with a brief civil war in 2011 and is in the midst of an economic revival, having posted GDP growth of 9.8 percent last year.
    Many at this bustling market in Ivory Coast's commercial capital, Abidjan, say that they're hoping for some reprieve in food prices during Ramadan, extended to them by the business community.
    "It's a time when we need to share with our brothers, and everyone else. We need to maintain good relations amongst different people, whether they are Muslim or Christian, during Ramadan, you need to share with everyone," said Abidjan resident, Babanan Salay.
    The month is typically celebrated with large evening banquets, where families gather at sunset to break their day's fast with spreads of food, salads, drinks and traditional deserts.
    Fofana Losseni, a tailor in the city said he and his friends have worked out a way to reduce their spending, and share the cost of the evening iftar meal.
    "No one is married amongst my group of friends, so in order to bring down food cost during Ramadan, we arrange it amongst ourselves. We are all brothers, and we come together to help each other. Because we know that Ramadan is coming, food prices go up, so we come together to find ways to make food less expensive," he said.
    Muslims make up about 40 percent of the native Ivorian population and three quarters of the immigrant population in Ivory Coast are Muslims, often referred to as Dioulas the name of one of the country's Muslim ethnic groups.
    At the Prix Verts supermarket in Abidjan, store owners are hoping to capitalise on Ramadan, by offering special deals and reducing prices on items such as cooking oil and sugar.
    "We have planned a special sales campaign, that we have called operation Ramadan. In the course of this operation, we have many products on offer. As you can see, we have Tunisian dates, you can see cooking oil, milk, sugar, and other products that are usually widely consumed during Ramadan," said supermarket supervisor, Christophe Ayi.
    For Many Muslims around the world Ramadan started on Wednesday (July 10). The month lasts for 29 or 30 days, ending wih Eid-al-Fitr celebrations.
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