Jakarta, IO – After a two-year-long pandemic, the Qurban – a livestock animal sacrifice performed during the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday – activities have started to bounce back, as the number of COVID-19 cases turns downward. Since public mobility restrictions have become more relaxed, economic activities are also recovering, resulting in the revival of a people’s economy.
This positive development is a blessing for the Muslim community, particularly for livestock farmers and traders. After a two-year void, they can finally benefit from livestock transactions for Qurban, just like before the pandemic. Fears over the recent foot and mouth disease (FMD) contracted by livestock swept over not only farmers and traders but also the buyers of Qurban livestock. Thus, the Government must evaluate livestock imports from countries that are not entirely free of FMD.
The spirit of Qurban
The threat of FMD on livestock has not discouraged Qurban economic activities. Data from the Agriculture Ministry shows that the demand for Qurban livestock this year has increased by 11-13 percent compared to last year. This demand is met with an adequate Qurban livestock supply.
The stock of Qurban animals in 2022 is estimated to reach 2.2 million. The Agriculture Ministry remarked that the Qurban livestock availability is sufficient.
As of Jun. 10, 2022, the stocks of Qurban animals include 822.2 thousand cows, 27.1 thousand buffaloes, 950 thousand goats and 400 thousand sheep. The need for Qurban animals is estimated at 1.8 million, which means a surplus of approximately 391 thousand animals.
The increase in demand is in line with the improvement in the national economy and people’s purchasing power, as can be seen in the GDP growth of the first quarter of 2022 at 5.01 percent (YoY). This is markedly different from the economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2021, which was 5.02 percent, and the first quarter of 2021 at minus 0.7 percent.