The suspension of sacrifices slaughtering in Morocco .. What is the economic repercussions? | economy

Ligament– The King of Morocco, Mohamed VI, called on his citizens to suspend the slaughtering ritual on Eid al -Adha for this year due to the great decline in the numbers of livestock due to the drought that the country is going through and its social and economic repercussions.

The king said in a letter read by the Minister of Endowments and Islamic Affairs Ahmed Al -Tawfiq in the first government channel on Wednesday evening: “We were keen to enable you to fulfill this religious ritual in the best circumstances, causing it to be accompanied by the duty to evoke the climate and economic challenges facing our country, which led to a significant decline in the numbers of livestock.”

She added: “For this purpose, and taking into account that Eid al -Adha is a certain year with the ability, doing it in these difficult circumstances will harm large categories of our people, especially those with low incomes.”

Political parties of the majority and the opposition valued this call, and considered it a wise decision called by necessity and interest.

The National Rally of Independents Party – which leads the government coalition – noted this decision, and said that it reflects the king’s keenness to raise the embarrassment and harm to the Moroccans, and facilitate the establishment of the rituals of religion according to what is required and the legal interest.

The Socialist Union of Popular Forces (opposition) called on all responsible authorities to follow the royal step in raising embarrassment and harm and establishing facilitation for the masses of the powers and fragile groups.

The Secretary -General of the Progress and Socialism Party (opposition), Nabil Ben Abdullah, said – in a post on the party page on Facebook – that the good reasons that led to the royal decision “bold and wise” require the government to ensure its effective crystal on the ground by taking the necessary measures to keep pace with at various levels, especially in terms of measures supporting the young livestock breeders.

Standard prices

This is not the first time that Morocco eliminates the ritual of slaughter on Eid al -Adha, as the late King Hassan II canceled this ritual 1963, 1981 and 1996 due to drought and economic crises.

Morocco is currently witnessing the seventh year for the successive drought, which has had a great impact on the national herd of livestock and the high prices of red meat.

These circumstances prompted consumer protection societies and other civilian bodies to demand the suspension of the slaughter ritual.

Last year, Eid al -Adha witnessed a significant increase in prices, and the Moroccan Center for Citizenship (Civil Authority) issued a report in which he said that the year 2024 witnessed record prices that Morocco had never known in relation to sacrifices.

The sacrifice price last year ranged between 200 and 700 dollars.

The government resorted to import to provide sacrifices in the markets, and allocated financial support of 500 dirhams (50 dollars) for importers to import 300,000 sheep while they were exempt from customs duties, but this had no impact on the prices that remained high.

The center talked about the decrease in the percentage of citizens who carried out this ritual, noting that the amount of waste produced in Casablanca has decreased, for example, on the day of Eid al -Adha, from about 16 thousand tons in 2023 to 12 thousand tons in 2024.

The center pointed out that on the last Eid al -Adha, a portion of the national herd was consumed, especially the ewes and sheep that are for the next season, which may affect the number of the herd and the price of meat in the future.

In 2022, the High Commissioner for Planning – a government statistical apparatus – issued the results of the national research on the standard of living of families, which showed that 13% of Moroccan families do not practice the Eid al -Adha ritual.

Herd

The cattle segment witnessed a remarkable decline during the past years, and the Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fishing and Village Development said last May that the size of the national herd of livestock amounted to 20.3 million heads in 2024, recording a decrease by 2% compared to the year 2023.

According to the data of the Ministry of Agriculture for the year 2021, the national herd was formed from about 21.6 million sheep, 6 million goats, 3.3 million cows and 192 thousand heads of camels.

The Minister of Agriculture said at a press conference in mid -February that the national herd fell by 38% compared to 2016.

In 2016, the Ministry of Agriculture conducted the agricultural general statistics, during which the numbers of livestock were counted, as it was launched last November, in coordination with the National Association of Sheep and goats breeders, the general census of the national cattle, targeting about 35 thousand Moroccan villages.

The Minister of Agriculture explained that the numbers show a severe shortage in the herd, which affected the production of meat, noting that in the normal years about 230 thousand heads were slaughtered, and currently about 150 thousand heads were slaughtered.

To provide meat in the markets and maintain the stability of prices, the government resorted to import, and until February 12, 21,800 heads of cows, 124 thousand heads of sheep and 704 tons of red meat were imported.

Expected

For his part, economist Bader Zahir Al -Azraq said that the suspension of the slaughtering ritual on the upcoming Eid al -Adha was necessary and required it to avoid serious results that would have occurred after the Eid, such as the drain of the cattle herd, the high prices of meat and the pressure on the purchasing power of citizens.

Zahir indicated – in an interview with Al -Jazeera Net – that this decision was expected, given the numbers announced by the Minister of Agriculture this month, which revealed a sharp decline in the size of the national herd.

He explained that this decision will have negative repercussions on livestock or “al -Kasaba” as they are called in Morocco, but its positive effects will include the sector as a whole and agricultural activity and also the purchasing power of citizens.

Eid al -Adha contributes to achieving the number of transactions of up to 14 billion dirhams (1.4 billion dollars) that goes to the countryside.

He added: “I expect the decision to contribute to saving the cattle and restoring the purchasing power of citizens by maintaining the stability of meat prices and also returning to achieving self -sufficiency in local meat.”

The repercussions of sacrifices

For his part, economist Rashid Sari said that the decision to suspend the slaughtering ritual will save the meat sector from what he called “heart attack”, noting that its revival after the deterioration of the herd situation over the past years is a “execution of the sector.”

The spokesman pointed out that the numbers announced by the Minister of Agriculture regarding the decline of the herd by about 38% compared to the year 2016 worrying.

In an interview with Al -Jazeera Net, he explained that in 2016 the size of the livestock herd reached 29 million heads, and this year he declined to 17 million heads, 30% of which are sheep and only one million of them are suitable for slaughter.

The expert was the repercussions of the revival of the slaughtering ritual in light of the deteriorating herd situation, including resorting to intense import to meet the request of about 6.5 million families.

He said: “Import needs are about 5 million heads, but we will not be able to exceed one million heads and their financial cost will be large.”

Among the other repercussions that Sari expect in the event of the revival of the slaughter of the slaughter this year is the high prices of meat, and he said, “If the price of a kilo of red meat is currently between 120 and 130 dirhams (between 12 and 13 dollars), then if the sacrifices are slaughtered in light of the current herd, the prices will continue to rise, and it is more likely that between 160 and 180 dirhams (between 16 and 18 dollars).”

As for the medium and long term, the speaker expected Morocco to lose its food sovereignty and have to rely completely on import.

Prices stability

Rashid Sari stressed that the status of the cattle herd is not only the result of climate fluctuations and drought, but also the result of the agricultural policies approved for years, calling for their review and reconsideration.

He said that the suspension of sacrifices will achieve the stability of meat prices and the restoration of the national herd that has been drained in the past years and achieve self -sufficiency, but it confirms that this result will only be achieved by taking procedures to keep pace with and practical measures, including:

• Dependence on local livestock, not imported hybrid cattle, which are not reproduced and the conditions of their grazing are expensive.
• Coordination with the Hassan II Institute for Agriculture and Veterinary to create a non -depleted water feed and the lowest cost.
• Supporting “Al -Kasaba”, that is, livestock breeders who are still steadfast in the sector and work to restore those who lost them as a result of climatic and social factors and their conglomerate in legal bodies such as cooperatives or small companies.