Eid ul Fitrior Korite as locally called in the Wolof language or Sunkari Salo in Mandinka is the day Muslims across the Muslim World celebrates the end of Ramadan, a month of abstinence from food, drink and worldly pleasure from dawn to dusk.

Eid auction is an important period in the business calendar. It’s a busy time for businesses to capitalize on Gambians looking for bargain clothes, shoes and other household items for the Eid festival.    

But for this year auction period, things aren’t looking good for business owners looking to flog off their wares. Shopkeepers have lamented about poor sales and that business this year’s auction is dormant and dull. They attributed it to “the financial hardship people are going through and also high taxation”.

Our reporter on Saturday visited one of the largest and busiest markets in the country, the Serekunda market, and spoke to several business men and women as well as customers about their take on this year’s auction period.

He spoke to business people who sell products like clothes, shoes, shirts, caps, necklaces, rings and many other items.

Musa Touray, a business owner of a unisex fashion shop, said “business in this year’s auction period is not very lucrative; it is hard because people have no money to buy from us.”

He blamed this year’s poor sales during the auction period to the ‘tax hike’ the government had imposed on them, adding that they pay huge amount of tax on their products at the Gambia Ports Authority and had to also add up prices for them to make profits from the sales.

Another businesswoman, Anta Nyang, said she travels from Coastal Road to Serekunda each day to sell.

She said they are not making lots of money as compared to the past years.

“However, we thank Allah for making us witness this year’s Ramadan because we are able to make little profits that can keep us and our family,” she added.

Mohammad Badan, a Mauritanian businessman in the Gambia, said “thank God, business is going smoothly but not as good as the previous years.”

But for Amie Jatta, who came to buy she said prices for products for this year is cheaper than the past years.

Reporting by Adama Makasuba