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Developing the rural mandis
ARTICLE (November 06 2002) : Retrospectively, the concept of rural market is as old as human civilisation.
For a long time the significance of rural markets was least affected since the growers, because of lack of necessary marketing infrastructure like developed roads, means of transportation etc. had no alternative but to use the rural market places for the disposal of their produce.
With the urbanisation of the society and technological development, the rural markets began to lose their importance particularly in the countries now known as "developed". However, in the "developing" countries including Pakistan, they are still of significance, although in varying degrees.
In most of the developing countries of Asia including Pakistan, the rural market centre is the first link of the small farmers with the marketing channel. It is also the farmer's main purchasing point of their inputs such as fertilisers, insecticides as well as various household goods of daily necessities.
Realising the significance of rural markets no serious efforts were made to develop them so as to be more beneficial to the farmers with limited resources. In Pakistan, also only half-hearted steps are taken for the improvement and making full use of the opportunities they offer for ameliorating the lot of the small peasant farmers.
Generally, there are a number of constraints that prevent the rural markets from becoming a dynamic force in rural development. Some of the constraints are given below:-
- Often the pricing of agricultural produce is weighted against the small farmers;
- Government's support price programme hardly reaches down to the markets at the village level;
- Marketing facilities are often crude or non-existent and complimentary services (credit, grading, market information) are inadequate or do not exist at all.
- Traditional marketing procedures often result in higher marketing costs and margins.
- There is a lack of management and development services to assist small farmers in improving their working efficiency.
The FAO, however, rising to the occasion, took cognisance of the situation in 1978. In view of the strategic role which most rural markets can play in the development of rural areas in general and of small farmers in particular, as agents of change and innovation, FAO, in co-operation with the German Foundation for International Development (DSE), initiated an Asian Regional Programme for the development of efficient rural marketing services with particular emphasis on rural markets for the benefit of the small farmer development.
In this programme, 10 Asian developing countries viz. Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand, participated.
Based on the understanding of the joint planning meeting of the national co-ordinators of the participating countries, each country carried out national survey of the rural markets, prepared rural markets medium-term plan. National seminars were also held to discuss the survey findings and medium-term plan.
The above was the phase-I of the programme. The phase II work was accomplished during the period from January 1979 to April 1980. In this period the main item of work comprised the holding of an Asian Regional Evaluation Workshop at Bangalore (India). In this workshop the progress of the programme was reviewed and future actions, both at the country-level and the Asian regional-level, were discussed. The main points were:-
- Need for improving the efficiencies (management, pricing, innovation and communication) of rural markets.
- Balancing physical investment with management efficiency.
- Training of marketing personnel to carry out the programme.
- Supports required to stimulate the development efforts.
Reaching such understanding, each country presented its medium-term action plan. Mostly, they were rural market (or rural marketing) development plans for which $100 million investment was earmarked to develop 400 rural markets and training of the required manpower. Some plans were accepted as part of the government 5-year plan while others needed to be approved by the planning ministries of the respective countries. Some plan required further refinement for which technical assistance was sought.
In addition to the overall rural market development plans, several countries also presented ideas for specific projects to accelerate or strengthen implementation of the rural market development five-year plans.
As to the required Asian regional actions the workshop made the following recommendations for:
(1) Technical assistance to be provided to needing countries to finalise the plans and other project documents.
(2) Exchange of successful experiences in the field of rural marketing, especially to small farmers.
(3) Promotion of technical co-operation among developing countries, (TCDC) to streamline and stimulate rural market development, and
(4) Establishment of an Asian regional mechanism to foster such TCDC regularly and in more organised ways.
The workshop also requested the FAO to inform the national co-ordinators about the progress of the activities from time to time and call for another Asian regional review in the near future to examine the progress and discuss further action required.
To the utter disappointment of the participating countries, including Pakistan, nothing has been heard in this regard.
Now when in Pakistan avenues are being sought to put the economy of the country on an even keel, it is an appropriate time that the beneficial programmes like the development of rural markets in which much effort have already been made, may be pursued vigorously without further loss of time.
This programme, if accomplished in right earnest may besides enhancing the income of the growers, go a long way to ameliorate the lot of the small farmers as well and may effectively contribute to the government's efforts for poverty alleviation.
It is, therefore, suggested the one government concerned authority should remind FAO of the fortune programme of rural market development asking as to why the FAO has made all the "love's labour lost."
Alternatively, the Federal Agricultural Marketing Department, whose head (Agricultural and Livestock Marketing Adviser), was appointed the Co-ordinator for the programme, may be put to task for not pursuing the rural markets development programme further to its ultimate logical end.
Source:
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