"I thought last Ramadan was going to be our most frugal," said Basma Shabani, a 62-year-old Damascus resident, looking back at a year also marred by the Covid pandemic.
"But it seems that this year we will remove even more dishes from our spread.
"We can't afford more than one type of dish on our table anymore and I am worried that in the future even this one dish will be beyond our reach."
In Tunis, Ramadan traditions have also been put to the test.
Food donations, a common custom during the holy month, have dropped to a trickle, with former benefactors now struggling to source basics for themselves.
Mohamed Malek, a 20-year-old student volunteer, has been collecting Ramadan food donations for years.
"Our donation cart is usually full within the hour but this year this is not the case," he told AFP.
"Some people are even telling us 'let us find food for ourselves first'."
In Lebanon, too, local charity networks are unravelling as the Ukraine crisis piles more pressure on a population hit hard by an unprecedented economic crisis since 2019.
"The strong solidarity which comes into action especially in months like Ramadan will be dramatically tested this year," said Bujar Hoxha, Lebanon director for Care International.
"Hyperinflation and soaring food prices in local markets make the long-awaited Ramadan month for many Lebanese challenging," he told AFP.
Many will "struggle to bring iftar meals to the table".
In Egypt, a leading importer of wheat from the former Soviet states, Muslims are tightening their purse strings ahead of Ramadan -- a time when spending usually rises.
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in March ordered a price cap on unsubsidised bread after the Russian invasion triggered a 50 percent rise.
The local currency also lost 17 percent of its value that same month.
"If someone used to buy three kilos of vegetables, now they're only buying one," said Om Badreya, a street vendor in western Cairo.
Somalia, which is grappling with its worst drought in 40 years, is also gearing up for a grim Ramadan as rising prices slash the purchasing power of the 15-million strong population.
Ramadan "will be much different as fuel and food prices are skyrocketing", said Mogadishu resident Adla Nur.
Even oil-rich Saudi Arabia is feeling the pinch.
"Everything is getting more expensive... every time I pay around 20-30 riyals ($5-$8) more for the same products," said Ahmad al-Assad, a 38-year-old private sector employee.
Qatar, however, has emerged as an exception with the government decreasing food prices ahead of Ramadan in a symbolic gesture.
"Prices of more than 800 commodities have been reduced in coordination with major outlets in Qatar, starting from Wednesday, March 23 until the holy month of Ramadan," said Qatar's commerce and industry ministry.
