Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis Toolkit

This EMMA study looked at the impact of the post-election violence of 2010-11 on the dried fish sector in western Cote d'Ivoire. The violence resulted in reduced numbers of market actors in the market system, interruptions in the supply chain due to insecurity, higher prices and the reduced purchasing power of vulnerable households. This report recommends unconditional cash transfer programs targeting vulnerable households, complemented by voucher programs for specific food items, along with various types of support to fish farmers and actions to promote social cohesion and the re-establishment of the rule of law.

This assessment analyzes the stresses placed on the crucial market systems of wheat flour and tomatoes in eastern Libya, following the rise of civil conflict in mid-February 2011. The physical infrastructure and human capital that supports and operates the wheat market system remains entirely functional, while the tomato market system has been affected significantly. Many conflict‐related problems in the tomato market system lend themselves to interventions with which international organizations are familiar: provision of input vouchers, cash for work, crop insurance and debt relief. However, wheat flour has a much greater bearing on food security in eastern Libya than tomatoes. The inability to import wheat is the defining problem affecting the market system, but is caused by political and legal issues beyond the traditional purview of most humanitarian organizations.

Since early March 2011, at least 57,000 refugees fleeing fighting and instability in Côte d’Ivoire have been crossing the border into Liberia and have become concentrated along the border and the main road in Grand Gedeh County. In the affected villages, already-limited food and seed stocks are being depleted, meaning that without assistance many farmers will not be able to plant in time for the next harvest. Oxfam undertook a market assessment of the rice and agricultural labor markets to define the most appropriate response and modalities to address emergency needs. The report offers the following recommendations: for vulnerable small farmers,a combination of rice vouchers, a once-off cash grant and seeds and tools package for targeted households; for refugees, a combined approach of in-kind distribution and cash transfers to allow them to meet their basic needs and support their livelihoods through investing in small income generating activities; and for refugees who want or have already started to farm, an additional distribution of seeds and tools. In addition, assessments of the imported rice and agricultural labor markets should be replicated in other areas affected by the refugee influx; the imported rice and agricultural labor markets should be monitored in order to evaluate the impact of the humanitarian assistance and adapt the response accordingly; and market value chain assessments should be extended to other key commodities such as seeds, hygiene items and other food items.

In August and September 2008, Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere was struck by three tropical storms. 86,000 people are now living in temporary shelters. Livelihoods and crops have been destroyed, and the entire road system has been severely damaged. This study was a pilot of the nascent EMMA approach with the dual purpose of better understanding critical market systems (beans and timber) for the population affected by the cyclones and gaining learning that could be used to improve the toolkit itself. The report recommends the direct purchase of timber from regional traders for delivery to beneficiary sites. It may be worth investigating a voucher-system instead of an in-kind distribution, which would need to be supported with trader transportation of timber directly to their households. Also recommended is additional research and cross-checking with the Shelter Cluster, government stakeholders and affected communities. Recommendations for the bean market system include cash-based interventions to increase the purchasing power of target beneficiaries; the provision of local and/or well-adapted bean seeds to farmers in time for agricultural production for the next season and supporting them with vegetable nurseries; the supply of credit to farmers to restore productive assets/infrastructure; the supply of credit to wholesalers whose stores were destroyed; market support activities to improve market system performance and monitoring and phase out of food aid activities.