In Rabat, Morocco, a significant shift is occurring as King Mohammed VI advises citizens to prepare for a departure from traditional practices in light of a troubling decline in sheep herds. Announcing the change via a letter read by Ahmed Toufiq, Minister of Islamic Affairs, on state-run Al Aoula television, the King urged families to skip purchasing sheep for sacrifice during the upcoming Eid Al-Adha. This rare directive underscores the severe economic and climate challenges that have rendered the annual sacrifice unaffordable for many.
Eid Al-Adha, which falls in early June this year, traditionally involves Muslims sacrificing livestock to commemorate a Quranic story where the prophet Ibrahim, in obedience to God, nearly sacrifices his son before God replaces the child with a sheep. Celebrated widely from Senegal to Indonesia, Moroccans customarily partake in this significant feast. However, the embedded custom has forced some families to obtain loans just to participate.
The Moroccan Center for Citizenship revealed that 55% of families surveyed last year struggled to meet the costs associated with purchasing sheep and related preparation utensils. This hardship is exacerbated by a persistent six-year drought in North Africa, which has significantly inflated food market prices. Sparse pastures, resulting from inadequate rainfall, have decreased grazing space and increased feeding costs for herders, leading to stark price surges in livestock. Reportedly, rainfall this season is at a striking 53% deficit compared to the average over the past 30 years, and livestock numbers are down by 38% since the last census in 2016.
In response, Morocco has turned to importing livestock from countries like Australia, Spain, and Romania, and subsidizing local herds in recent years. Nonetheless, the preferred local sheep often exceed the monthly earnings of a typical Moroccan household, where the minimum monthly wage is approximately 3,000 Moroccan dirhams ($302).
This is the first time in nearly three decades that Morocco has issued such a societal decree to bypass the customary holiday feast, signaling the ongoing struggles with food prices despite Morocco’s evolution into a more economically diverse nation with advanced urban infrastructure. During King Hassan II’s era, similar decrees were issued during crisis times such as war, severe droughts, or when the International Monetary Fund required Morocco to cut food subsidies.
Recent protests by various activists and trade unions reflect widespread dissatisfaction with basic food cost surges and criticisms of the government’s efforts to mitigate price inflation as inadequate.
