Many Kabul residents have been deterred from their normal celebration of the end of Ramadan by exorbitant prices on traditional Eid treats.

The three-day celebration that marks the end of the Ramadan fast is a time of great joy in most Afghan families. Children receive small gifts, almost everyone gets new clothes, and guests are treated to mountains of cookies, cakes, dried fruits and other delicacies to mark the occasion.

The first day of Eid is dedicated to prayer: Afghans go to the mosque for a special Eid service, then go to their friends and relatives to beg forgiveness for any injuries or anger between them. Some people also make a special visit to well-known social or political figures. The parks are full of children at play.

But all of this gaiety costs money, and many Afghans have been feeling the pinch of a poor economy.

The busy Deh Afghanan section of Kabul is even more crowded than usual during the few days preceding Eid, as people come to shop for bargains on pistachios, almonds, raisins, cookies and cakes – all destined to be offered to the streams of visitors who come to every house during the festivities.

The supermarkets boast lines of people, but the street merchants who offer lower quality and cheaper goods from wheelbarrows on the street are also doing a brisk business. Their barrows along the Kabul River make it difficult to get through the shopping district, known as Froshga.

Inside the Afzalzada supermarket, many are waiting in line to buy their Eid treats.

A women while buying cookies in Kabul.

One old man, Saeed Maqsoud, stands with his two sons. Originally from Kapisa, he now lives in Charahi-e-Qamber, in an area known as “Zorabad.”

Saeed Maqsoud bought a plot for 30,000 afghani ($638) in Zorabad and has built a house, where he lives with his large family of eight children.

It is now his turn to purchase supplies; he packs his bags with cake and cookies, but gets only three kilograms of baked goods, costing 300 Afghanis. He would like to buy dried fruit as well.

“I wanted to buy more things but I cannot afford them,” he said.

Saeed Maqsoud told www.bamdad.af that his wages, along with what his two sons earn, will only provide the most basic of needs. He seems very upset about the high prices of the Eid delicacies.

“On the one hand the price of everything has increased, and on the other hand people are competing to buy more and more things for Eid,” he said. “Such inappropriate expenditures among people will cause negative social consequences.”

Malik Jan, the owner of a supermarket in Deh Afghanan is also upset about the skyrocketing prices.

“Compared to last year’s Eid, the price of dried fruit has increased by 20 percent,” said Toryalai Azizi, a shopkeeper in Charahi Qamber.

Eid expenditures are especially burdensome for young men who are engaged. They are expected to buy jewelry and clothing for their fiancées, along with cake, cookies and dried fruit for her family.

“Islam orders Muslims to follow moderation in all aspects of their lives.”

This year the population is complaining widely that there is no control over prices, and that shopkeepers are setting their own figures.

 “There is no monitoring system, and each shop has its own price,” said Sayed Maqsoud.

But officials at Kabul City Hall say they are powerless.

“Based on a free market policy, the municipality cannot control prices,” said Khair Mohammad Safdari, the head of the office for market oversight at Kabul Municipality. “The city government only has the right to monitor the quality of the materials in the market.”

Islamic clerics are against excessive expenses during Eid.

“Islam does not allow Muslims to celebrate lavishly,” said Faizulllah Fayaiz, a member of the Sub-Office of Islamic Education at the Ministry of Education. “Islam orders Muslims to follow moderation in all aspects of their lives.”

Once Afghans get through this Eid, they have just two months until the next major celebration: Eid al-Adha, during which many Afghans sacrifice a sheep or goat. This will lead to another round of major expenditures for a population already unable to cope.