keting: SSA has continued to open its markets to traders outside the continent in response to calls for global trade liberalization, but has remained largely closed to intra-African trade. As a result, the potential for intra-African trade within and between subregions is largely untapped. While
traders from outside the continent have continued to visualize a continent-wide market, there seem to be asymmetries in the perceptions of market and investment opportunities by private agroindustry and agribusiness communities. Most of them perceive a national, or at best, a subregional market, not a common regional market. In the face of globalization, this limited scale is not optimal. Economies of scale along commodity value chains, economies of vertical coordination among the different stages and economies of complementary diversification and specialization among countries and subregional groupings are critical in order to realize the full competitiveness gains and the intraregional potential of an African common market in agriculture.

Improve the connection between farmers and markets. The link between producers and post-harvest activities can be improved to increase the efficient use of production and postharvest technologies. Technical assistance in production and postharvesting techniques and operations, and training and capacity development to enhance farmers’ management, negotiating and bargaining skills are much needed. Other approaches include the promotion of contract farming/outgrower schemes or other forms of contracts that allow for advance payment and provision of inputs and extension services from agribusiness companies to farmers, thereby reducing the need for credit to which many farmers lack access. Farmers will also benefit from innovative methods of receiving market information and intelligence, mechanisms and guidelines that allow for accreditation of agribusiness companies, farmers organizations and cooperatives, as well as regulations on foreign investment.Capacity development and facilitation of dialogue between farmers, distributors, agroprocessors and marketing agents. This approach can be used to improve adherence to standards relating to quality and volume, as well as timeliness in the delivery of agricultural produce. Productive dialogue is key to examining agribusiness companies’ pricing incentives with a view to encourage farmers to produce higher quality products in a timely manner. In addition, establishing longterm contracts and viable partnerships between farmers and agribusiness companies that ensure the provision of training, technical, extension and financial support to farmers and farmer organizations has proven to be fruitful.

 Other options for improving connections between farmers and markets include increasing and sustaining government/public sector support to develop and implement policies and guidelines that encourage investments in private agribusiness ventures while protecting producers; facilitate information generation on production and postproduction technologies; provide marketing infrastructure and information systems; and put in place fiscal incentives that are supportive of research and development not only for enhancing on-farm productivity, but product development based research and innovation to facilitate off-farm growth of agro-industries and marketing.

Market development and market access. The state of underdevelopment in SSA markets, low levels of market integration and poor infrastructure continue to cripple the competitiveness of African agriculture. Africans, the majority of whom live in rural areas, are poorly served by both input and output markets. Without well functioning input markets, developments in AKST will not benefit SSA farmers, as seeds, fertilizers, tools and other inputs will remain out of reach for the majority, due to high input prices resulting from inefficiencies created by high transaction costs and information asymmetry. Similarly, low prices in output markets prevent producers from earning income conducive to poverty alleviation and stimulating a demand for non-farm products, a necessary condition for industrial growth and a structural transformation of SSA economies. Improving the functioning of SSA markets is vital to reversing the stagnant state of agricultural productivity and to increasing incomes in the largest employment sector on the continent. In addition to increasing incomes for the poor, well functioning markets can reduce the food bill of urban populations, the majority of whom are food insecure and spending a large proportion of their incomes on food.

 Interventions for enhancing the performance of African markets and hence linking producers to the markets must ensure that markets work for the poor, by developing markets where markets do not exist and improving infrastructure where markets do not function properly due to infrastructural related constraints (MA, 2005). Markets are especially rudimentary in environments characterized by low population density, dispersed rural households and a poor rural roads network. In addition to ensuring that markets exist and function, addressing challenges related to market exclusion for the poor is crucial. These constraints include inadequate productive assets and collateral; social attitudes barring women from participating in the market; and poor legal and regulatory environments. Even where markets exist and efforts have been made to provide the poor with the tools necessary for participating in them, unfavorable terms of trade including poor output prices and wages remain major challenges to the performance of SSA markets. The situation is exacerbated by a lack of bargaining power by the poor and poor access to information. Some options for addressing these challenges are offered below.

Improving basic infrastructure. African trade and marketing is constrained by the rudimentary state of Africa’s infrastructure. More innovative approaches are necessary to create, through policy, legal and institutional reforms, an incentive environment that is conducive to mobilization of initiatives and resources from rural communities, farmers’ associations and other private-sector stakeholders for investment in basic production, market and social infrastructure (e.g., irrigation, rural roads, rural water supply and electricity systems, health and education facilities). African governments must be encouraged and supported to develop national policy frameworks that identify priorities for rural investments as part of a national network of services and infrastructure, and specify the roles and responsibilities of various actors in delivering services. With decentralization taking root in many Africa countries’ governance structures,
it is vital to encourage greater involvement of decentralized