Ahead of the forthcoming Eid-el Kabir celebration, prices of ram, one of the necessities for the celebration has skyrocketed in Osogbo, the capital city of Osun.
Eid-el-Kabir, an annual Muslim festival, involves the slaughtering of animals to commemorate Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Ismail, in obedience to God.
Some citizens have expressed worry over the lack of resources to buy the livestock this year, which they say has risen to more than a hundred percent of its former price.
At the Ghandhi Bus Stop ram market in Kobo area, Orisun Igbomina 102.1FM correspondent observed that ram prices have surged dramatically.
Fatai Sodiq, a ram seller, noted that a ram sold for N150,000 last year now costs between N250,000 and N300,000.
Medium-sized rams, which were N130,000 in 2023, are now priced between N450,000 and N650,000.
The largest rams, previously N700,000, have risen to between N900,000 and N1 million.
The smallest rams are now sold for between N80,000 and N90,000.
Mohammed Aliyu, another seller, expressed his concern over low patronage, stating that people were not visiting the market to purchase the animals as expected.
Abiodun Tijani, who bought a ram for N450,000, stated, “This year’s price is unimaginable. I never imagined the livestock would be this expensive. My brother and I had to combine resources to purchase this medium-sized ram.”
