Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and a time of piety and fasting for Muslims all over the world. Many Muslims across Nigeria also consider it a time to be together with their families and friends as people would gather together for breaking the fast, or iftar, with a home-cooked meal.
During this season, it is easy to lose track of all your spending in-between the lavish feasts and giving money to charity, coupled with the Eid fitri celebration that comes up immediately after the fast.
So, you need to balance your expenses for Ramadan, which enables you to save up for the holidays. A financial consultant and auditor, Mr. Hameed Lawal, says when you are considering to stockpile food items at home as going to the market may be inconvenient during this period, be a smart shopper and avoid expensive food.
Let’s face it; the easiest way to save for the holidays and the Ramadan feast is by not going for expensive break-fast buffets. If you can, avoid restaurants entirely. Shop for iftar (break-fast meal) meal ingredients at the market and prepare the food yourself.
This way, you can stick to a budget, and at the same time, get to enjoy a more intimate meal with your family and guests. Remember, you don’t have to sway off your budget; instead, plan financially for Ramadan in advance for items that are most likely to have a more attractive price-tag during the holy month.
So, buy items like rice, flour, oil, juice and milk. When you are shopping, try to differentiate between needs and wants. Do you need to spend few more thousands for the curtains decorating the windows of your house, or is it okay to reuse or recycle the one you have?
Shop for iftar (breakfast meal) ingredients at the market and prepare the food yourself. This way, you can stick to a budget, and at the same time, get to enjoy a more intimate meal with your family and guests
Remember that Ramadan is a time when shopping malls stay open until the early hours of the morning, to accommodate people’s adjusted schedules. So, you may just be tempted to window shop and in the process buy what you don’t need at this period. Each year, the cost of fruits and vegetables tend to go up.
Endeavour to buy nonperishable items in bulk; then buy perishable items in bits. The demand for food means it could be the best time of the year to purchase all those kitchen basics and eat fresh, which may help you drop a few pounds at the same time. Try to reduce wastage; so when buying food to break your fast, see for yourself, whether you can finish eating what you bought, as you do not want to end up throwing away excess food. It is against the spirit of Ramadan.
RECALL
- Stick to your budget
- Shop smartly in bulk
- Buy and cook what you can eat at a time
- Reuse unused or idle items for zakat
For Eid, try to plan your gift purchases early because all consumer businesses anticipate high demand and bump up their prices. In order to do charity, known as Zakat, you can make use of the pile up of your extra clothes, kitchenware, unwanted furniture and other home items throughout the year and send them to the less privileged or call a mosque organization to pick up your goods, this way, you don’t have to go through the pressure of overspending and timing bumps.
Endeavour to keep enough cash safely at home or at the office so that you won’t go through the stress of going to the bank as ATM machines often malfunction due to excessive usage. This way, you will be able to limit your visits to the banks for pressing matters such as cashing or depositing a cheque.
You can also use online banking for transfers, statements and other needs. But that also has to be checked in order to avoid over-shooting your budget. For corporate workers, Ramadan will be the best time for you, to go on your annual leave from work. If it doesn’t seem realistic, you can apply for leave for the last 10 days of Ramadan and cancel all activities, and spending more time in the Masjid (Mosque).
This way, you will be able to save money such as transportation cost to and fro. Since this period is a time for sober reflection and spiritual cleansing, you can focus more on reading and reciting the Quran, rather than be on your phone or watch television, which is Sunnah, according to the prophet. This way, you will reduce your spending on your phone and laptop.
In case you are cash strapped or have little money in your pocket or account, you can save more by locating the resources available to help people in exactly your situation by approaching mosques or organisations, who feed people during the Ramadan. All you need to do is to swallow your pride and ask for help. Even if you have no affiliation with them before hand, there is a very good chance they will be willing to help as there is no shame in it.
