Farmers' and Traders' Sources of Market Information in Lira District

Abstract

A baseline study was one of the first activities of a research project on ‘Decentralised Market Information Services in Lira District, Uganda’. Using the Sustainable Livelihoods approach as an entry point, data collection included both PRA techniques and questionnaire surveys. About 70% of farmer households in Lira District own a radio and in most cases it is working. Women generally said that they listen to the radio when their husbands are listening, a fact that limits the potential for programmes specifically targeting women. Good reception and good programmes are the main reasons why certain radio stations are preferred. News, announcements, educational / development programmes, and early morning / gospel programmes are the radio programmes favoured in rural communities. Family/neighbours/friends, Radio Lira (RL) market news, and traders are the main sources of market information for farmers. Suggestions concerning improvements of the RL Market News programme include the following: better coverage of community markets, broadcasting the programme more often (i.e. repetition), involvement of villagers / communities in the programme, more information on crop production, group formation, and crop storage. Information requirements expressed by traders during the survey are mainly related to market prices, and demand and supply. Other categories indicated include information on availability and conditions of credit, processing equipment (cost and availability), crop production forecasts, taxation matters, and other local government issues. When asked for their main sources of general information, traders indicated radio, other traders, family/neighbours/friends, newspapers, extension officers, and local government representatives as the main sources. The results of the baseline survey were used for the development of a series of ‘radio spots’ on collective marketing by farmer groups, and a related manual for extension and NGO staff. Both means of communication are being tested in rural communities.