Improving Agricultural Market Performance:
Developing Agricultural Market Information Systems
3
obtained from this study shows that farmers and other market actors are not accessing the MIS
and using the information provided as a basis for their marketing strategies and investment
decisions. They use the mobile phones to access information from their peers and other actors.
Uganda has advanced from being one of the pioneers of 1GMIS in the 1990s (with FOODNET) to
a landscape populated by a wide range 2GMIS platforms provided by the government and
private organisations as well as by NGOs. The diversity of existing MIS platforms is further
shown by the fact that whilst some were limited to national coverage, especially the private ones,
others covered regional and international market information. However, most of the
stakeholders consulted reported not being aware of and/or not accessing existing MIS. The
stakeholders include farmers, traders (both small-scale rural traders and large-scale ones),
warehouse operators and bankers. Even among policymakers, several did not consult the
existing MIS. The only exceptions are policymakers working on food security and agricultural
extension issues such as NAADS, and development practitioners whose remit includes
interventions to mitigate food crisis (e.g. officials of WFP and USAID).Among the factors identified as limiting uptake of existing MIS by key market actors in the case
study countries is an apparent disconnect between the information stakeholders perceive as
crucial to their trade and investment decisions and what is offered on the MIS platforms. Trend
analysis is often missing and the price information provided tends to be de-linked from quality
standards which are enforced in the formal segments of the markets. Reliable output forecasts
and data on available stocks within the country are often not reported. Also missing, as is the
case in Uganda, is information on prices and availability of quality inputs. The price data
reported also does not reflect actual transactions with auditable trail but rather information
obtained by phoning or interviewing traders. Farmers and traders in both Indonesia and Uganda
find it quicker and more reliable to phone their peers and other traders directly rather than
consult MIS.
Developing market institutions such as agricultural commodity exchanges and WRS, which
foster structured trading based on standardised weights, measures and quality can generate
transparent prices which can increase uptake of MIS. At the same time, such systems can
enhance agricultural marketing and finance, thereby creating incentives for increased
investment in raising farm productivity and output. However, cases of success in developing
such systems especially in Africa, are rare largely because of lack of robust systems which
guarantee delivery of quality products as well as the settlement of trade obligations by buyers.
Policy actions which are supportive of the development of such market institutions and which
avoid restrictions on trade within and between countries can also contribute to more effective
MIS which also drive improvements in agricultural markets. These are discussed further in the
next subsection.