With rising living costs in Ethiopia, and world wide, the price of sheep on Easter day soared between 300 and 1300 birr.

Lamb is the meat of choice for the Easter holiday that comes at the end of 55 days of lent – in which followers of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity avoid eating all animal products. But this year, the lent may go on for long since the price of sheep equaled the monthly salaries of many middle-income families.