Beneath the shadow of a gleaming development, the festive spirit of the holiday market dims. Displaced sheep vendors deal with dwindling sales, while a nearby cattle market thrives and a well-stocked but deserted agricultural centre struggles to attract customers, finds AKSAH ITALO, FORTUNE STAFF WRITER.

A palpable sense of dread hung over the Qera market this holiday season. The expansive fields, once alive with a mix of sheep and goats, are now eerily quiet. Piles of construction materials from nearby demolitions have replaced the four-legged residents.

The massive corridor development project which began two months ago displaced 18 sheep vendors. Nursedin Nur, his face etched with worry, surveys his meagre 150 sheep – a fraction of his usual stock. They now struggle in a less visible location. Efforts to secure a temporary space for the holidays proved futile.

"We've been exiled," Nursedin mutters, gesturing to his dwindling flock. "This is my life's work."

Delil Jemal, the team leader, describes their plight. Their pleas for a reprieve during the holidays fell on deaf ears. With the vibrant market atmosphere gone, sales have plummeted.

"No one comes here," Delil despairs. "We've lost everything."

Despite a slight price dip compared to Christmas, the future remains uncertain. Officials hint at a temporary market, but details are scarce. Nursedin and his colleagues, caught in the crossfire of progress, face an uncertain holiday season.

Delil sees no way of replacing the buzzing atmosphere of their former place of work with another marketplace.

"We have lost it all,"  he said.

The unbothered flocks of sheep tucked in every other corner fetch between 5,000 Br and 20,000 Br. There is a slight price dip from Christmas time, which hovered between 8,000 Br and 23,000 Br.

Although officials disclosed efforts are underway to offer temporary space a few kilometres away in the Bulgaria area for the holiday market, Tesfaye Nemera, deputy head of the wereda 5 administration, said lobbying is all they can do as clear directions have been coming from the City Administration.

"It is beyond our mandate," Tesfaye told Fortune.

While the government seems to be moderately successful by dropping the inflation rate by 2.2 percentage points to 28pc, economist Atlaw Alemu (PhD) believes long-term solutions can be achieved by permanently addressing security concerns, strategic public expenditures, and corrections to systemic economic problems—holiday or not. He said systemic incompetency and disrupted supply chains plague the wider commodity market.

"A tight monetary policy should not allow poor expenditure management," he said.

The bovine market a few meters away was faring relatively better. Its safe distance from the main road had spared the vendors from the ravages of developmental demolitions.

Bovines from Harari, Wellega and Jimma towns roam freely as their owners chase after them. The prices were also markedly higher in this part of Qera, with the horned bovines fetching between 55,000 Br and 400,000 Br. The last holiday saw prices of bovines from 80,000 Br to 200,000 Br.

Vendors such as Simeneh Belayneh eagerly await to talk up any customers who might throw a glance at his merchandise. Simeneh has halved their supply this year from 18 bovines.

"I don't want to experience last season's losses," he said.

A group of six men hops from vendor to vendor, haggling for better prices, for three hours. For the 60,000 Br budget which will be divided six ways, Nigatu Kinde, the leader, had difficulties finding a "good option for a fair price." He said prices for the cattle size his group is looking for are nearly double their budget. "These are unbelievable prices," he said, looking to try his chances at another market.

"Things sure have changed from last year," Nigatu told Fortune.