Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis Toolkit

The number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is expected to exceed one million by the end of 2013. Tensions between host and refugee populations are expected to rise as competition over jobs and resources becomes even more important to the survival of both communities. This EMMA assessment was launched to analyze the key market systems upon which refugees and vulnerable host communities rely for income in the North and Bekaa Governorates of Lebanon in order to identify opportunities for humanitarian agencies to promote market-based income-earning possibilities for host and refugee populations. This report provides a summary of the findings for three market systems that are critical for refugee and Lebanese host communities as source of income, namely construction labor, agricultural labor, and service-sector labor. The opportunities for promoting or strengthening livelihoods related to the construction, services, or agricultural labor sectors are very limited. Each of these sectors has been significantly impacted by the crisis in Syria and is not capable of absorbing additional workers at a livable wage. Despite this bleak outlook, the EMMA makes several recommendations for narrowing the household income gap through vocational training, market-smart humanitarian programs, household financial assistance programs and the strengthening of local labor markets.

The number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon is expected to exceed one million by the end of 2013. Tensions between host and refugee populations are expected to rise as competition over jobs and resources becomes even more important to the survival of both communities. This EMMA assessment was launched to analyze the key market systems upon which refugees and vulnerable host communities rely for income in the North and Bekaa Governorates of Lebanon in order to identify opportunities for humanitarian agencies to promote market-based income-earning possibilities for host and refugee populations. This report focuses specifically on construction labor and finds that this market system has been drastically impacted by the crisis in Syria and that construction-related income-earning opportunities are now very limited. It recommends building construction-related livelihood opportunities into humanitarian programs, particularly shelter and rehabilitation programs with construction components. It also suggests linking refugees and Lebanese workers with employment services and training.

More than three decades of armed conflict in Sri Lanka led to a steady deterioration of the food security situation along with social and economic infrastructure in Sri Lanka's Northern Province. Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu are two districts in the north that were severely affected in the final phase of the war during January to May 2009. In mid-2009, resettlement programs began returning those displaced in the war to their home communities in these two districts. This report presents the results and recommendations of an EMMA of the credit market system that sought to build on the findings of previous assessments looking at household asset holdings and losses by mapping out the various sources of credit available in the targeted region. While there is a wide array of credit options available to households in the two districts, the services do not reach the majority of the resettled people, particularly the recent returnees. The report recommends increasing loan funds available to CBOs and cooperative societies; improving the organizational capacity of cooperative organizations; using financial literacy workshops/training as a tool to link households with financial institutions; and advocacy for changes in the collateral and loan structure requirements of the formal banking system and for the expansion of credit.

More than three decades of armed conflict in Sri Lanka led to a steady deterioration of the food security situation along with social and economic infrastructure in Sri Lanka's Northern Province. Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu are two districts in the north that were severely affected in the final phase of the war during January to May 2009. In mid-2009, resettlement programs began returning those displaced in the war to their home communities in these two districts. This report presents the results and recommendations of an EMMA of the red rice market system to better understand the availability of red rice in local markets and any constraints facing the market system. This analysis shows that the supply in these regions is sufficient to meet the need of the target population, but that consumers have limited access to this supply due to low purchasing power. Its recommendations include cash for work activities, indirect interventions, and advocacy to strengthen the red rice supply market system in the two districts.

More than three decades of armed conflict in Sri Lanka led to a steady deterioration of the food security situation along with social and economic infrastructure in Sri Lanka's Northern Province. Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu are two districts in the north that were severely affected in the final phase of the war during January to May 2009. In mid-2009, resettlement programs began returning those displaced in the war to their home communities in these two districts. This report presents results and recommendations from an EMMA that focused on the availability of cross-breed milking cows to meet the demand for farmers seeking to both replace their cattle lost during the end of the war and to expand livelihood options through milk production. It concludes that the milking cow system in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu is functioning, but at a very low capacity relative to the demand, with few prospects to increase capacity in the near-term without outside assistance. Thus, it recommends advocating for fewer restrictions on cattle transportation, as well as providing support mechanisms to dairy farmers such as cash grants, Dairy Village programs and improvement of breeding practices. Importing milking cows from India and Pakistan is also suggested to quickly address the need for milk products in Sri Lanka.

More than three decades of armed conflict in Sri Lanka led to a steady deterioration of the food security situation along with social and economic infrastructure in Sri Lanka's Northern Province. Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu are two districts in the north that were severely affected in the final phase of the war during January to May 2009. In mid-2009, resettlement programs began returning those displaced in the war to their home communities in these two districts. This report presents the results and recommendations of an EMMA of the masonry labor market that seeks to understand how well the current masonry market is functioning relative to the demand for labor and whether there are opportunities to promote job creation in the sector. It concludes that the masonry market is functioning well; however, there is a scarcity of skilled masonry laborers in the region due to the extensive training period and lack of interest in the local community. This assessment concludes with two main recommendations, namely to support vocational training service providers to train unemployed youths in masonry, and to link these institutions with chief masons for advanced on-the-job training opportunities. Such recommendations will speed the engagement of local unemployed workers in the masonry sector and benefit those resettled families in need of homes and public buildings.

On September 26, 2009, tropical Typhoon Ketsana made landfall near Baler, Quezon Province in Philippines. This EMMA on the rice market system was conducted after Ketsana in Calamba City. It found out the rice prices were stable even after the crisis. However, local households experienced rice shortages, and local harvests were decreased by a significant amount. Given the market's quick rebound after the shock, it seems logical that food assistance, and rice in particular, should be delivered through local markets. This assessment recommends advocacy for closer coordination and communication between market, local government and humanitarian actors; advocacy for humanitarian and government agencies to strengthen assessment activities; the monitoring of market recovery; and cash transfers for vulnerable households, in some cases via cash for work programs.

Heavy rainfall beginning in July 2010 caused flooding in most districts in Pakistan, affecting 20 million people and destroying field crops. This assessment aimed to assist agencies in identifying appropriate program interventions and focused on the wheat seed, fodder and casual agricultural labor market systems in Punjab Province. For wheat seeds, this report recommends cash transfers to restore agricultural infrastructure; vouchers to ensure quality and appropriate agricultural inputs; support to extension services; and advocacy for land rights. For the casual agricultural labor market, this report recommends unconditional cash transfers; cash for work; income support for people unable to participate in cash for work programs; and income generating activities and vocational training. For the fodder market system, this report recommends cash for work to restore agricultural infrastructure for enabling normal seasonal employment patterns; vouchers for agricultural inputs; and advocacy around land rights.

December 2013 violence in South Sudan had killed thousands and displaced more than 900,000 people. It has also led to a serious deterioration in the food security situation, and some 3.7 million people are at high risk of food insecurity in the coming year. Food partners have so far reached about 865,000 people under the emergency operation between January and April 2014 with most of the food being distributed in-kind. The objectives of this market analysis were for Oxfam to explore alternatives to in-kind food aid in its different areas of interventions and to create a market baseline for three critical market systems, including red sorghum, maize flour and soap. This report recommends the following response activities: advocacy for integrating maize flour into the food aid distributed, and procuring both maize and sorghum food aid through Juba vendors; commodity vouchers for soap distribution; value vouchers as a top-up for basic needs; and conducting market analyses in other Oxfam intervention areas in South Sudan.

Of the four major provinces affected by the monsoon floods in 2010, Sindh was the worst in numbers of people impacted and displaced. Over 30% of the more than 7.2 million flood-affected people in Sindh have been temporarily displaced, and planting for next year’s wheat crop is likely to be delayed. This report summarizes the findings of an inter-agency assessment team that looked at the impact of the devastating monsoon floods of 2010 on market systems in Sindh, Pakistan. Wheat flour, livestock fodder, agricultural labor, and bamboo/timber poles markets were selected for the assessment. The overall objective of the response options for the agricultural commodities is to restore the income of small farmers and agricultural laborers and strengthen their role in agricultural production and recovery. For the shelter materials, the objective is to support the repair and/or replacement of flood-damaged houses through local market systems, by promoting disaster-resistant construction technologies.