Marketing improvement in the developing world

MARKETING IMPROVEMENT IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD MARKETING IMPROVEMENT IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD: WHAT HAPPENS AND WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED This one (LN 00 SXL5-K5B-0ASN FAO Economic and Social Development Series No 37 Marketing improvement in the developing world: what happens and what we have learned by J.C Abbott and colleagues of the Marketing Group, FAO Marketing and Credit Service FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 1984 Revived edition, 1986 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this publication not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever by the Foaond dAgriculture Organi- zation of the United Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city oF area or ofits authorities, oF the delimitation of ts frontiers or boundaries The views expressed are those of the authors The copyright in this book is vested in the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations The book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, by any method or process, without ‘written permission from the copyright holder Applications for such permission, with a statement of the purpose and extent of the reproduction desired, should be addressed to the Director, Publications Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the UnitedN; di Caracalla, 00100 Rome, Italy © FAO 1984 Printed in Waly Acknowledgements The author would like to thank all those whose work has gone into this book, in particular the FAO marketing field officers to whom it is dedi- cated J Coudert, H Creupelandt, A.A El Sherbini, M Fenn, S.L Gal- pin, G Holsten, D Link, L Lorinez, W Lumholtz, H.J Mittendorf, P.J Nelson, P Newhouse, E Reusse, A Scherer, F Shah, W Shreck- enburger, A Silva, H Spink, R Spinks, H Steppe, S.M Taylor, P.ter Hofstede, A Thomson, S Van Rees and K Wierer all contributed directly or via reports and working papers Apologies are offered for changes made in editing their material into the text Preface This book is concerned with food and agricultural marketing improvement in practice It draws directly on FAO experience in assisting Member Nations in the developing regions over the period 1955-80 For many of these years, there were 50 to 100 FAO advisers and consul- tants working on a wide range of marketing issues Their long-term goal was to build up the capacity of these countries to solve their own problems Marketingis a highly dynamic subject Its problems not disappear as development proceeds indeed, they may become more intricate and complex The need for training personnel to staff marketing enterprises and services will continue In many ways this book follows on from the FAO Marketing Guide No 1, Marketing Problems and Improvement Programmes, first pub- lished in 1958 Readers may find it convenient to refer to the first part of this guide for a simple statement of marketing principles A fuller cover- age of economic, pricing, marketing and development concepts is available in Agricultural Economics and Marketing in the Tropics; FAO col- laborated in the publication of this text, in 1978, with the Longman Group, London Readers seeking background on economic and marketing relationships may refer to this text Meanwhile, a glossary of marketing terms in common use has been provided at the end of this book Marketing Improvement in the Developing World is also designed for the use of policy-makers and marketing leaders in the developing countries, and to assist aid agencies and other organizations and institutions concerned with the development process Officers of banks, commercial enterprises and other institutions engaged in developing country operations will also benefit from the experience assembled in this text The “Issues for discussion” section at the end of each chapter is designed to ensure that students become familiar with the structure of food and agricultural marketing in their own country Since much of the information may not be readily available, instructors will have to make arrangements for it to be built up through successive inquiries Students should participate in these inquiries as far as time permits When answers to all the factual questions are in the hands of the instructor, they should viii be held back until after an initial round of discussion In any event, all students should be required to make at least one set of direct interviews and site visits in each subject area Instructors will need to contact enterprises in advance to arrange for student visits Stress may be laid on the advantage for those enterprises of a wider understanding of the realities of marketing in their country Some strategic marketing enterprises may be reluctant to cooperate In this event, students should be taken through the exercise of building up a dossier on their operations by inquiries of other knowledgeable people (competitors, suppliers and customers); and from relevant official and unofficial sources, including press cuttings, which should be collected reg- ularly by the instructor Contents AcP knowledgements x v Food and agricultural marketing improvements Marketing as aconcept What to to improve marketing Some equity issues 10 Issues for discussion lỗ Reference: 16 Building up government support services 17 Decisions by the uninformed 17 Surveys leading to action in India 21 Practical initiatives in Sierra Leone 23 Policy formation in East Africa 26 Preparatingon of ma2rketing : investment projects 370 Whatwehavelearned ———————— 40 Issues for discussion 44 Reference: 45, 3. Training staff for marketing enterprises and services 47 Assessing training needs Seminars to create awareness SD Fellowships to study in other countries 56 Pre-service marketing training programmes 36 In-service training 61 Whatwehavelearned —————— Issues for discussion 67 Reference: 68 Foodgrains 7I Manathegmiarknet gwith 10 percofethne ctrop 72 Arbitrary decisions 71 Establishing a grain marketing agency in Somalia 79 Botswana Agricultural Marketing Board 83 “The humid tropics 86 Long distanicnetshe Sahel 88 Helping low-income consumers 90 WhI atwehavelave earnlea ed ——————————— §08 Reference: 5._ Fruit and vegetables 101 Centralized grading and packing 101 Benefiting from climatic advantage 107 Matching supplies to market demand 112 Processing 116 Need for flexible marketing organization 121 M Wha Nee twe— h—a—velearned124 References 20 6, Livestock andmeat Strengthening existing marketing systems 129 Channelling supplies to the new rich of the Near East 140 Exploitinga limited export potential 146 Meeting consumers’ needs behind aveil of religious disapproval 150 Wh1 atwefor havdieslcuessairned 1%58 Reference: 159 Fertilizers and other inputs 161 Orga an n effei ctiz ve di istrn ibug tion system 161 Extending fertilizer distribution channels in India xi Ensuring that small farmers are well served (Kenya) 173 Helping the farmer obtain supplies from the lowest-cost 177 source (the Caribbean 179 ‘What we have learne Issues for discussion Reference: 183 185 Markets and marketing enterprises 187 Rural assembly markets 187 Indigenous entrepreneurs Government-sponsored enterprises 203 What we have learned I oe 209 References DG22 Glossary 223 225 ... adequate training of the people concerned, most improvement problems would solve themselves Unfortunately, training in marketing has been a latecomer Much of the training offered has been theoretical,... courses in marketing at American universities, and more recently also in Europe Gradually, they are moving up into more influential positions Universities in developing countries are also beginning... complex The need for training personnel to staff marketing enterprises and services will continue In many ways this book follows on from the FAO Marketing Guide No 1, Marketing Problems and Improvement