This year, Eid el-Fitr (the Muslim feast that marks the end of Ramadan) has a special flavour as it comes in the summer. Caught between the hammer of price hikes and the anvil of limited income, the average Egyptian family finds itself struggling helplessly to make ends meet. Although Egyptians from all walks of life agree that Ramadan and Eid el-Fitr are spiritual occasions that should be observed by piety and worship, billions of pounds are lavished annually on banquets during the holy Muslim month and the feast immediately following it. In 2009, the food bill totalled LE30 billion ($5.3 billion) in Ramadan, according to the State-run Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (CAPMAS). Given similar inflation rates this year, the country's food bill is expected to hover around the same level. But is the joy the same? "Of course Ramadan and the feast haven't changed, but we are not the same as we used to be," Shaimaa Hassan, a 42-year-old civil servant, told the Egyptian Mail. "We've lost the joy of 20 years ago. Life has changed in every way. When I graduated in 1990, LE100 was a fortune. Now, it's peanuts," she said. Why has the joy gone? Roughly 40 per cent of Egyptians live on less than $2 a day, according to the World Bank. Has the joy gone because people have to work so hard to survive? "Economic hardships make our good times bitter. As a mother of two, I find it hard to make ends meet, especially with the preparations for the back-toschool season. What about parents who have more kids than I do? I think it must be impossible!" Shaimaa added. Egyptian schools are expected to open on September 18. In August, a clearance sale was expected to drive a shopping spree nationwide. But store owners were disappointed at the weak shopping spirit. "In the past, we used to postpone shopping until a clearance sale. Now it doesn't make any difference. Prices keep shooting up day after day. Besides, most stores offer substandard goods," says Nahed Abdel-Rahman, a 28-year-old lawyer. "Egyptians have their own traditional way of observing Eid el- Fitr. There's kahk [cookies] and eidiya [cash given to children]. But it's very hard financially, as the summer holiday, Ramadan, Eid el-Fitr and the back-to-school season come one after another. "Ramadan for many families comes first. Food is a priority, then come kahk and clothes," she explains. Last year, Egyptians spent LE15 million on kahk. Due to higher prices of flour, sugar and butter, this figure will probably rise by at least 20 per cent, according to market analysts. "A kilo of kahk starts from LE35. [Cheaper] biscuits start from LE25. Prices have gone wild as costs have spiralled. Prices of flour and sugar have soared," says Mohamed Farouq, owner of a confectionery shop in central Cairo. "Petits fours and kahk stuffed with dried nuts sell for LE40 and LE45 per kilo respectively. Everything costs a lot these days, even a humble fuul [broad bean] sandwich.
