Eidel-Kabir Celebration: Subsidy Removal, Naira Devaluation Badly Affect Ram Prize

With just a few days to the 2023 Eidel-Kabir celebration, preparations are in top gear but Muslim faithful across the country are lamenting the rising cost of rams and other animals permissible for slaughtering for the celebration.

Many traders of the animals ascribed the hike in prices of rams and other animals to the present economic realities in Nigeria.

A recent market survey in Abuja, Lagos, Kwara and Kano states showed as much as a 100% increase in the cost of some of the animals permissible for the Eid celebration compared to the previous years.

Some of the traders attributed the increase in the cost of the animals to the high cost of transportation caused by the recent removal of subsidy on petrol, others, especially those who import the animals from other countries, attributed the increase to the devaluation of naira.

Politics Nigeria reported that petrol which was sold at N195 per litre before subsidy removal is now N490 or more depending on the location. Also, the US dollar was sold at N770 at the parallel market yesterday.

On the buyers’ part, the economic realities have also affected them as it seemed that many of them would not be able to afford slaughtering rams this year

A Daily Trust reporter visited some markets in Abuja and reported that there were many rams but very few buyers are available for them because the rams seemed untouchable.

Muhammadu Sani, a ram seller along Mike Akhigbe Way, Jabi, Abuja, lamented the hike in prices even in the rural areas in the far northern states.

“Last year, a ram selling at N200, 000 in the village is now N300, 000. You must also feed the ram apart from the high cost of transportation. A sack of animal feed is N8,000 even in rural areas. It was sold at half the price last year. All these costs must be factored.

He also noted that before now, they pay N6,000 to N8,000 to transport a ram from states like Kastina and Jigawa to Abuja but now they spend not less than N10,000 on one ram.

According to him, the lowest price of rams range from N180,000, saying the big ones sell from N500,000 to N700,000.

At the Kubwa Abattoir, the lowest price for a medium size ram is N60, 000 while big size ones go for as high as N320,000.

At the Abattoir market in Karu, a buyer, Alhaji Yunusa Bello, lamented that he bought a small size ram for N120, 000, saying “I just bought it because there is nothing I can do.”

Market survey in Lagos also indicated that some rams, which used to cost between N50, 000 and N60, 000 now go for N120, 000 and N130, 000.

At Kara market along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, an average small sized ram costs N100, 000.

Kano’s situation is similar with Abuja and Lagos as rams were available for sale but not many were buying.