DAKAR (Reuters) – There was no meat within the giant silver bowl round which Astou Mandiang and her household gathered after breaking quick at dusk in Senegal’s capital Dakar, the place Muslims celebrating the holy month of Ramadan are feeling the pinch of inflation.
Food costs in West Africa have shot up by between 20% and 30% over the previous 5 years, with drought and battle pushing hundreds of thousands off farmland and stalling food manufacturing, help businesses say.
At the identical time, border closures through the pandemic have disrupted provide chains.
The struggle in Ukraine is probably going so as to add much more strain on Muslim households stocking up on food and beverage to cater for visiting household, neighbours and people in want.
“At the market there’s a lack of food,” mentioned Mandiang, stirring a simmering fish and tomato stew in a humid kitchen with out electrical energy.
“Prices have soared and we return house with out figuring out what to prepare dinner,” mentioned the 64-year-old, who scrapes a dwelling by promoting porridge on the facet of the street.
Fish, cheaper than meat within the ocean-facing nation, is now the one animal protein Mandiang can afford for her household.
She was grateful to have stocked up on onions, key to many conventional dishes, earlier than elevated demand throughout Ramadan additional elevated costs.
Most of the food historically consumed in Senegal, together with the staple rice, is imported.
“We rely on exterior logistics,” Action Against Hunger regional consultant Mamadou Diop instructed Reuters.
Economic sanctions towards neighbouring Mali over a navy coup, for instance, have elevated the worth of beef in Senegal as a result of Malian livestock can now not be offered throughout the border, he defined.
Charities that distribute food throughout Ramadan are struggling to fund their common donations.
Scouring market stalls for the most effective offers, charity employee Astou Ndour mentioned her organisation would solely be capable of assist 80 households this yr, in contrast with 90 final Ramadan.
Cooking oil is 50% dearer. The value of rice has risen by round 10%.
“When [shopkeepers] give us change we expect they made a mistake,” mentioned Mandiang. “They inform us the worth has risen, and there may be nothing we will do.”
(Reporting by Ngouda Dione; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by James Macharia Chege and Alex Richardson)
