Not all dried fruit is dried the same way, and the differences show up the moment you compare a few side by side. Kurma, raisins, dried apricots, prunes and dried figs each start from a different fresh fruit and go through a different drying process, which is why they don't taste or keep alike.
Mazafati is actually a good example of how much variety exists within "kurma" alone — it's usually sold semi-dried or fresh-moist rather than fully dried like Ajwa or Safawi, which is why it has a softer, almost sticky texture and a shorter shelf life unless refrigerated. Fully dried varieties lose more moisture at the drying stage, so they last months at room temperature instead of weeks in the fridge. Our piece on fresh vs. dried buah kurma goes into that trade-off in more depth.
Raisins are dried grapes — sun-dried or machine-dehydrated, not left on the vine the way kurma is left near the palm. That's why raisins shrink evenly into small, uniform wrinkles, while a date dries unevenly around its pit. Dried apricots are usually sulphured to keep their orange colour; without it they darken and taste more concentrated. Prunes and dried figs, like dried kurma, carry more sugar by weight than their fresh versions simply because drying removes water and leaves the sugar, fibre and minerals behind.
If you're comparing kurma varieties by price and origin rather than just texture, our Medjool dates pricing guide is a useful reference point, and demand for these fruits — Mazafati included — tends to spike heavily around festive seasons, which we cover in our piece on seasonal buah kurma demand.
Storage-wise: semi-dried Mazafati keeps best refrigerated and eaten within a reasonable window, while fully dried kurma, raisins and dried apricots can sit in a sealed, dry container for months. Malaysia's humidity is the main enemy for all of them — an airtight container matters more here than in a drier climate.
None of these are healthier than the fresh fruit just because they're dried or semi-dried — the sugar is simply more concentrated per bite. The variety and moisture level tell you more about how to store and use it than any general health claim would.