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Residents of Mogadishu are greeting Ramadan in an atmosphere of greater stability and improved security conditions, but many still have no means to provide for themselves and their families during the holy month.

Before Somali and African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) forces expelled al-Shabaab from the city and nearby areas in August 2011, for years Ramadan was marred by conflict as the al-Qaeda-allied group frequently attacked the capital's residential neighbourhoods and presidential palace.

Farah Aweys, a father of five who lives in the Hamar Jadid neighbourhood in the Wardhigley District, said, "I welcome Ramadan with my child and wife in our home after we fled from mortar shells and a grinding war between al-Shabaab and Ethiopian forces in 2007."

"At the time, we went to the Elasha Biyaha area, which had taken in half of the residents of the destroyed city," he said. "We decided to come back home four weeks ago after the government took control of all the entrances leading to Mogadishu."

"This is the first time we are able to welcome Ramadan without violence in Mogadishu, which really makes us happy because government forces have managed to expel the rebel force from Mogadishu and nearby towns such as Balad and Afgoye to the north and south," he told Sabahi.

Safiya Enow, 51, a grocer in Bakara Market, said unprecedented crowds and shoppers have flooded the market in recent days, as people are buying large quantities of food for breaking their fast at iftar and for suhoor, which is eaten before fajr prayer.

However, she told Sabahi that a hike in food prices for rice, flour, pasta, cooking oil, powdered milk, juice, vegetables and dates has accompanied the fall in the dollar exchange rate against the Somali shilling. This expense has caused financial problems for Somali families who receive remittances from family members and relatives living abroad, forcing many heads of households to take to the streets and beg to be able to meet the needs of their families.

Internally displaced 'in dire need of help'

While battles rage between the Somali army and al-Shabaab in central and southern parts of the country, tens of thousands of displaced persons in the capital face problems regarding food and shelter, and suffer from shortages in humanitarian aid.

The Bosnia camp for internally displaced persons in the Hodan District of Mogadishu shelters 72 families who fled from the Bay and Bakool regions in south-western Somalia. They suffer from difficult living conditions as the month of Ramadan approaches, including severe food shortages and overcrowding.

Camp Deputy Director Nur Ali Abdulle said the financial and in-kind support they receive from the Norwegian Refugee Council is not enough, and called on aid agencies to send humanitarian aid to help alleviate suffering and grief.

"Our hands are extended to Somali businessmen and foundations to provide us with aid in the form of food, medicine and other requirements. We expect Islamic charities in Kuwait and Turkey to send us food parcels and food rations for breaking the fast to fight hunger and meet basic needs," he told Sabahi.

Mariam Ali Hassan, 39, a mother of six, was forced to flee her village of Goof Guduud near Baidoa and come to Mogadishu to seek shelter in the Bosnia camp when her husband died four years ago. She said she was despondent about the difficult financial conditions her children are experiencing as they face Ramadan with empty hands and without food.

She told Sabahi that she is the sole provider for her family and for the past five months she has not been able to find a single job. "How will I be able to fulfil my religious duty this month while women like me are plagued with unemployment, hunger and privation?" she said.

Madina Hassan Abdi, 32, a mother of seven whose husband is elderly and ill, fled with her family from Hudur in Bakool province two years ago when extremists expelled the international relief agencies.

"I only sell bananas and mangoes and I sometimes wash clothes for rich- and middle-income families to support my husband and children," she told Sabahi. "Relief workers have not been able to cover all our basic needs."

"Ramadan is upon us and we are in dire need of support. Our pockets are empty and we do not have enough money to afford our daily requirements," she said. "The dismal economic situation has clearly reflected on shopping activity in local markets. We are still trying to avoid hunger and our shelters are empty."