Costly times, generous plates: Ramadan in Nigeria

LAGOS, Nigeria (MNTV)- Increasingly tough economic conditions in Nigeria’s largest city Lagos have made it hard for many Muslim families to even have a simple meal to break their fast. 

However, the kindness of many Muslims like Naheemah Ishola, a restaurant owner, offers respite, reports Africa News. 

Ishola makes it her business to feed the hungry during Ramadan. Her contribution is especially important this year with food prices soaring. 

She says that the cost of essentials has skyrocketed. By the end of 2024, a 50-kilogram bag of rice reached a staggering 75,000 naira ($48.50) in Lagos and an even higher 99,000 naira ($58.20) in Abuja, making everyday meals a luxury for many.

With inflation stretching household budgets to their limits, more people are going hungry.

Ishola and many others like her have taken it upon themselves to cook and share meals with those who might otherwise have nothing to eat.

For her, and many others who are helping in different ways, Ramadan is not just about fasting but also about kindness and charity, especially towards those in need. 

“The motivation for me is I know that most people cannot afford a decent meal on a normal day and as a Muslim, during the holy month of Ramadan, one of the Five Pillars of Islam says we should give back to the society.

So I’ve taken it upon myself since 2017 as my duty to feed the vulnerable people in major bus parks, mosques and the roadside,” says Ishola.

For Ishola is not completely shielded from the financial difficulties she sees around her. “Every time I hand over the meal packs to the vulnerable people on the street there’s this form of fulfilment I feel inside me”, she says. 

Hunger led to stampedes during charity food handouts last year. It resulted in many deaths and injuries, including 35 children who died in two incidents alone. 

Muhammed Baba, a father of three, struggles with leprosy as well as poverty. His gratitude to Ishola is not just for feeding his family, but also for the dignity she affords him.

“This month is the month of Ramadan, and everybody wants to come and share food to those who need it and we are very, very happy for that and you know as we live in this community, we don’t want to go out begging,” says Baba.

Muslims make up a marginal majority in Nigeria’s population of nearly 220 million.

Ramadan offers Muslims in Nigeria an opportunity to reinforce communal ties through charitable giving to earn spiritual rewards in the blessed month.