SECTION C: WORK GROUP RECOMMENDATIONS

C.1 Improving the efficiency and dynamism of marketing channels, storage and processing
C.2 Adapting market infrastructure to meet the food needs of the year 2020
C.3 Improving market planning, management, rules and regulations to meet the food needs of the year 2020
C.4 Improving market information and promoting grading and standardisation
C.5 Role, constraints and performance of women food traders and youth employment in food marketing

C.1 Improving the efficiency and dynamism of marketing channels, storage and processing

PROBLEMS	CONSEQUENCES	ACTIONS	RESPONSIBILITY
Marketing channels, transport and levies
Market Channels are long and complex; Producers are not well organised; Transport difficulties & bad roads; Lack of appropriate packaging for the bulk transportation of perishables; Trade restrictions imposed by commodity trade associations; High charges for produce loading and unloading; Multiple tariffs charged on goods by L.A.s at loading points both at production area and at market centres.	Lower quality, product spoilage and higher post-harvest losses, particularly for perishable products; Loss through pilfering and deterioration; Artificial food shortages and higher prices; Low producer returns. Lower production incentives. Farmers are compelled to sell at unfavourable prices; Difficulty with accessing production areas. Higher prices to consumers; Transport costs increase consumer prices; Handling difficulties (loading/unloading) and additional costs to food prices. Delays in transportation from farm to assembly centers entail loss of produce quality.	Farmer Associations should be assisted to be more effective at grassroots level to help their members market their produce; Develop marketing extension services; Creation of special markets for producers in urban centres for producers and other traders who are not affiliated with market associations; Enactment of bye-laws to regulate activities of 'Market Queens'; Specially designed vehicles to be purchased to move food from producing areas to consumer centres; Police and L.A.s to work together to reduce the multiplicity of barriers on food routes; Appropriate packaging should be facilitated at the rural market level, especially for perishables.	District Assemblies (Dept. of Agriculture); NGOs; Banks; District Assembly; Private Sector; District Assembly; Police; Customs; Research Institutes; Ghana Standards Board (G.S.B.).
Storage
Food storage facilities. Are lacking in both urban and rural areas; Inadequate storage methods (e.g. cassava is still stored in barrels containing water); Poor market design allowing limited market space. District Assemblies do not appreciate the need for space; Financial constraints.	Sometimes commodities are sold at a loss e.g. perishables; High incidence of food spoilage and losses; Product pilfering and stealing; Loss in quality of product.	Proper storage facilities should be provided at all levels; Farmers and traders should be given training in storage skills; Market designs should include storage facilities; Policy makers should be informed about the importance of appropriate storage and food processing techniques and requirements; Credit lines should be developed for the establishment, by both the public and private sectors, of storage facilities and the necessary equipment.	Farmers; District Assemblies; MFA Extension Agents; Market Women; District Assemblies (Agriculture Dept.); F.R.I.; Universities; MDPI, GIMPA; Financial Institutions; NGOs.
Processing
High initial investment; Lack of technical know-how; Inadequate packaging e.g. lack of local packaging material; Inadequate raw material base.	Keeps prospective food processing entrepreneurs out (lower employment); Poor quality products; Low patronage of goods with/unattractive packaging; Factories close down.	Technical and managerial training should be provided to prospective processors; Develop local packaging material industries e.g. Glass, tin, aluminium, plastic; Establish plantations; Promote medium and small processing enterprises; Provide credit for food processing activities.	F.R.I.; Polytechnics and Universities; Financial Institutions; District Assemblies; NBSSI; NGOs.

C.2 Adapting market infrastructure to meet the food needs of the year 2020

PROBLEMS	CONSEQUENCES	ACTIONS	RESPONSIBILITY
Poor access roads and lorry parks in urban areas
	Traffic congestion leading to: Consumers discouraged by fuel and traffic costs, muddy roads, delays; High haulage costs; Produce spoilage from traffic delays; Farmers bringing produce are reluctant to reach inaccessible markets; Vehicle owners reluctant to use bad and congested roads; Delays to emergency response; Waste collection and disposal impaired; Proliferation of hawkers; Vehicular/pedestrian conflicts.	Road and Lorry Parks need Resurfacing (gravelling/tarring); Widening of narrow roads; Creation of Lay-Byes or One Way street systems; Encourage the establishment of private parking lots; Enforcement of Legislation on street parking/hawking.	Urban/Metro roads Departments; AMA/Town & Country Planning/Urban Roads; AMA/Private Sector.
Inadequate or unavailable facilities
(Clinics, day care centres, toilets & conveniences)	High risk to lives (emergency situations face a long trip to the Hospital); Loss of business due to long trips to nearest health centers and hospitals; Divided attention to children during sales by traders; Loss of early learning opportunity for children of traders; Health risks; Environmental fouling; Loss of revenue through low patronage due to unsightly and unhealthy surroundings.	Provide space and sensitise private sector to construct and manage clinics, day centres, toilets and baths in the markets.	Joint AMA and Private Sector
Electricity shortages
	Antiquated writing systems leading to rampant fire; Unqualified and unregistered electricians employed to install private services leading to fire risk to life and property; Overloading of system leading to blackout transformer damages; Limited range of business operations; Insecurity and limited Night trade where no lighting Discomfort in overcrowded stalls where no electricity for fans to be used; Over heated stalls and storage facilities also damaged goods and reduce their value.	Rewiring of all old markets; Extension of mains to market sites by ECG and installation regulated to only qualified and ECG approved electricians; Insurance and re insurance of market/properties at market; Provision of security floodlights.	AMA; ECG/AMA; AMA/Private Insurance Companies; AMA/Market Companies.
Non existent or inadequate storage facilities
	Improper produce handling; Spoilage; Limited range and volume of trade items; Food contamination and associated risk to health of consumers.	Land must be earmarked for market extension particularly for storage and warehousing facilities; Rehabilitation and/or construction of storage facilities; Decongestion of existing markets (Research needed); Rehabilitation of existing markets with poor facilities and low patronage (e.g. London market); Voluntary relocation to new markets; Penalties and enforcement of hawking regulations; Development of satellite markets and reduced rent charges there as an inducement to facilitate relocation.	AMA/Town & Country Planning; AMA/Market Companies.
Security
Problem of incomplete land acquisition by AMA/Market Companies; Perimeter walls and fences limited. Where available, only one outer gate usually; Lighting systems non-existent; Personal and physical insecurity.	Leads to encroachment and harassment by landlords; Without a wall, people encroach on markets; Theft is rampant; Loss of revenue to traders; Single access/exit gate is risk to lives under any emergency; Policing is made more difficult.	Legal acquisition of lands must be complete; Perimeter wall and fences with floodlights can reduce crimes committed under cover of darkness; Police post discourages petty crime and discourages victims of crime taking law into their own hands; More Access/Exit needed.	AMA; AMA/Private Market Companies; Police/AMA.
Spontaneous Markets
Lack of market infrastructure. Security measures are needed to keep people, especially children, from the rails.	Health and safety risks are high; Loss of income to L.A.s if no orders and tolls not collected.	Should serve as important foci for immediate market development sites; Immediate survey and research of support needed; Additional road transport and parking lot needed; Need level be based on research. Immediate safety measures (rail guard fences) needed.	AMA; Private Market Companies; Ghana Railways Authority.
Poor drainage, sanitation & food hygiene facilities
Facilities lacking; Poor supervision of quality standards.	Unpaved floors means some produce must lie on bare ground often muddied after rains; Unavailable, choked or open drains leave much potential for flooding; Produce contamination can result and food hygiene brought into question.	Tar and pave market access walk ways and market floors; Positive commitment by market operators (e.g. GPRTU/market associations) to bear some costs be researched; Note must be taken of concern by market operators against irresponsible contract payments made from monies raised for special infrastructure projects.	AMA; Market Operators (e.g. Transport Unions, Trader Associations); AMA, SFO.
Night Markets
Floodlights insufficient or non-existent in night markets of Accra Metropolitan Area; Most night markets have muddy unhygienic grounds; Night market traders hire own security (watchmen) or sleep in their stalls because of insecurity; Perimeter fences lacking; Hazardous health and fire practices (e.g. open flame lanterns, soot smoke)	Lack of floodlights causes a risk to personal safety for traders; Cash from sales at risk of robbers and thieves; Lack of perimeter fence affords thieves good escape; Open flame lanterns are a serious fire risk to people & property; Open flame smoke and soot pose serious health risks to buyers & sellers and pollute the environment with green house gases; No perimeter encourages hawking, which gives rise to vehicular/pedestrian conflict.	Provision of floodlights and better general electrical facilities; Provision of perimeter walls at night markets; Enforcement of regulations for minimising fire and health risks.	AMA; ECG; Private Market Operators.
Open Air Markets
Poor development of sheds, lorry parks perimeter fencing, warehousing and wholesale storage facilities	Since there may be barriers to direct entry of producers to main markets centres, open-air markets offer a good opportunity for direct earnings to farmers and their wives who bring their produce directly to Accra.	They should be better facilitated to yield toll incomes to AMA; Assess the potential of open-air markets as future market centres	AMA.

C.3 Improving market planning, management, rules and regulations to meet the food needs of the year 2020

PROBLEMS	CONSEQUENCES	ACTIONS	RESPONSIBILITY
Market planning:
Physical market structures and facilities are old; Myopic planning that leaves no room for future expansion and development of markets; Old markets are engulfed in built up areas and inaccessible to big haulage trucks; Most new emerging settlement areas lack markets; Frequent change of leadership (Mayors); Inadequate planning skills; Decentralising authority to different L.A.s has meant excessive local tax charges along entire trade network into city.	Congested with poor sanitary facilities; Financial constraints by the Assembly (AMA) affects proper market maintenance and new market development; Laws governing markets development to be made flexible to enable private participation in the building operation and indeed ownership of markets; Leadership changes obstruct continuity of projects Specialised supervisory skills deficient (e.g. Architects, engineers, technicians); A vehicle can pay tolls at over ten checkpoints moving from Paga in Upper east to Accra in the South. This adds to food costs in Accra.	The old markets may have to be rehabilitated and modernised where feasible (as is being done at Osu Market, and Tuesday Market); Satellite markets to be established especially at new emerging areas (e.g. Nii Boiman Market); These new markets should be developed with long term perspectives; To ensure continuity of markets projects new leadership should adhere to plans and programmes once initiated; AMA must pay adequate attention to Recruitment Selection to ensure competence in staff engaged; Capacity building: on the job staff skills development; Levies on foodstuffs in transit must be abolished to avoid double taxation and high market prices.	AMA; Private Market Operators; Limited Liability Companies or institutions through the Stock Exchange could buy or float shares to develop markets; AMA to liase with other Mayors to settle this anomaly.
Market management
Management Boards non-existent AMA's Treasury Department only concerned with collecting fees, tolls and levies. No reinvestment in maintenance.	Treasury not performing other management functions as Provision of facilities and services; Provision of security; Rehabilitation and maintenance of facilities; Market planning and development; Enforcement of rules and regulations.	Market Management Boards will have to be established to manage markets-stockholders or some beneficiaries may need to be included; Private management of the markets is to be considered.	AMA
Outmoded Management Rules, bylaws toll levels.	Sanctions now not punitive enough, nominal levies eroded by devaluations and inflation now meaningless.	Bylaws and rules should be reviewed and made relevant to current day economic conditions.
Market Associations have laws of association by which they abide	Some of these may be in conflict with AMA rules.	Local arrangements or rules by market associations to be made known to the AMA.
Low Revenue Mobilisation capacity by AMA	Puts limit on developments that can be effected.	To augment the financial position of the Assemblies, the Central Government may need to remit to the Assemblies all rates due such as property rates on Ministry buildings, Government Departments and Agencies.
Occasional conflict on borders between different L.A.s	Detracts management concentration and results in loss of revenue.	Political boundaries of districts need be demarcated by the State to avoid conflicts (e.g. AMA vs. Ga District).

C.4 Improving market information and promoting grading and standardisation

PROBLEMS	CONSEQUENCES	ACTIONS	RESPONSIBILITY
Market Information
Inadequate information for needs of traders, farmers and consumers; Seasonality of production; Inadequate understanding of the marketing systems by public servants; Poor intra - Accra market information; Limited information flow from the district due to inadequate detailed knowledge of the market mechanism; Ineffective policy intervention.	Gives rise to price fluctuations; Lack of information leads to glut/movement of traders/control by traders of certain commodities; Inefficiencies all round; Costly errors in marketing decisions by operators resulting in more costs passed to customers; Translates into inadequate information at the national level leading to poor monitoring of food situation and advising thereupon; Wrong signals to agricultural producers and food marketing operators, failed interventions, and general food insecurity especially in cities.	Can be improved through the use of extension agents; Improved mobility of extension & other public services should be considered; Motivation for extension agents and other public servants needed; There must be a follow-up by AMA to have an in-depth knowledge of the culture of market; FM stations to provide market information in local dialects; Market place Public Address Systems should be installed and prices and other messages passed to traders and customers; Establishment of information gathering, processing and dissemination mechanisms at the district levels; In-depth studies ought to be conducted on all aspects of the marketing systems; High calibre consultants' work is required with contract tied up with effectiveness of recommendations.	MoFA; District Chief Executives (DCEs); MoFA; FM Stations; Private Market Operators; Market Associations; AMA; Other L.A.s.
Grades & Standards
No formal systems of grading and standardisation in the markets for all agricultural commodities; Metrication Law of 1974 into force but unused, no grading criteria known to be in force.	Farmers do not get premium price for their produce; Subjective appraisal product quality; Popular containers such as 'Milo' tins used for measurement; Difficulty in effective conduct of transaction in cross-broader trade; Limitations on formal cross-broader trade within the ECOWAS Sub-Region.	Develop grading criteria for the various agricultural commodities; Educate farmers, traders, and consumers on need and practice of grading in local languages; Enforce use of measures; Institute educational campaign involving market associations; Re-introduce compulsory use of measuring scales and other measures with government support in financing scales in the introductory phase; For effective implementation, there is a need for the development of grading criteria for the various commodities offered.	Ghana Standard Board (GSB) in collaboration with various stakeholders; AMA, MFA, ISD, GSB and Market Associations to liase on enforcement of the 1974; Metrication Law; MoT; GSB; Legislature; L.A.s; Market Associations; Ghana Exports Promotion Council (GEPC).

C.5 Role, constraints and performance of women food traders and youth employment in food marketing

PROBLEMS	CONSEQUENCES	ACTIONS	RESPONSIBILITY
Inadequate market facilities
Market operators excluded from planning decisions; Tradeswomen were not involved in the decision making about markets; Lack of telecommunication and loudspeakers; Hostel facilities for visiting traders (that arrive after market hours).	Washing and toilet facilities either not available or if present, not gender sensitive; Special facilities not provided for butchers and fish mongers in their shops; Size of stores limited; Proper unloading and loading sites not accessible for vehicles both of traders and customers; Walk ways not paved and storeys not functional; Not enough warehouses, clinics, Day-care centres/creches in market areas; Meeting rooms for market associations not included in market plans and therefore not available even at some new market sites; Telecommunication facilities and public address systems not provided in markets; Affordable hostel facilities for itinerant traders who may usually arrive with wares late into the night.	Involve tradeswomen in decision making and planning and ensure plan designers meet with market operator associations or representatives of all interest groups; Survey of needs adequately at preplanning stage ensuring commodity specific needs are met (e.g. butcher shops with sanitary facilities and cold stores); Post design consultations must be held with interest groups and feedback on completed model incorporated in final design work.	MoF AMA
Congestion in markets
	The result of misuse of pavements as sites for displaying wares; Congestion facilitates theft; Danger to health and safety of market operators; Given crowded situations high potential for epidemic outbreaks.	Educate traders not to misuse pavements; Punitive sanctions must be set and enforced to discourage abuse; Relocation of established traders should be well planned to avoid loss of regular customers to fragile businesses, or to create unemployment in the previous market; Security people to enforce no hawking outside old market area; Creation of dedicated street markets should bring hawkers to a focal point.	AMA; Market Associations; ISD; Police.
Unhygienic conditions
Lack of toilets, running water, dust bins and waste disposal sites around markets.	Danger to health and safety of market operators; Given crowded situations high potential for epidemic outbreaks.	Waste bins should be made availability and active educational campaign on proper use; Privatise cleaning of market; Set up disciplinary committee on hygiene made up of Health inspectors, market women and AMA; Educational campaigns targeted at traders, Market Queens and their Associations, and customers. Through radio, posters, public address systems, mobile video and cinema shows, advertisements at theatres ... Comprehensive training for public health field workers.	AMA; ISD; MoH.
Security lacking at Markets
	Rampant theft; Market women have to hire private security guards (Watchmen) and costs are passed onto costs of wares making food expensive; Market women and teenage traders not feeling secure and subject to molestation by junkies and drunks.	Markets should be adapted to have perimeter walls/fences, central gates which get locked and opened only at set times and hostel facilities for itinerant traders to prevent in market sleeping practices; Insurance against loss fire and theft should be facilitated and again an intensive educational campaign instituted to support its introduction.	AMA; Private Market Operators; Insurance companies; Police.
Banking Facilities Deficient
	Deficient Banking facilities means traders are not getting educated on the use of banks; Limits savings mobilisation and the development of greater sophistication in business; Limits opportunity for international trade by local traders; Market operators find it hard to leave uncovered wares for prolonged periods. Their banking facilities need therefore be very close by.	Banking facilities must be built into market places and made available to formal credit institutions for hire or purchase; Educational campaigns to introduce traders some of whom may be illiterate to the modalities and advantages of modern banking in an easy to understand fashion.	AMA; Private Market Operators; Formal Financial Institutions (FFIs).
Low Capitalisation of Local trade Banking facilities simply too far from market centres within the AMA area.	Opportunities for expansion, patronage of sophisticated safety nets in business (e.g. insurance) are limited; Not being close, banks do not know the special needs of market operators. For example, rent on new premises may often be higher because of needed deposits. Banks can assist there with suitable loans and low instalment repayment schedules within their operational budgets.	Investigate mobile banking for traders - market women; Include traders in target group of business assistance funds; encourage to operate bank accounts in order to be able to attract loans - banks and women; Facilitate formalisation of Traditional 'SuSu'1 into Credit Associations and Unions; Credit facilities for market women in order to meet their special needs (e.g. help them pay new expensive facilities at new market sites).	FFIs; AMA; BoG; Government and AMA to liase with private sector and financial institutions to institute facilities of relevance.
Modern Trade Practices Deficient
Very low practice of modern trade methods and record keeping.	Bookkeeping problems especially when customers buy on credit; Introduction of trade laws becomes expensive (e.g. low uptake of knowledge on VAT being delivered presently).	Education taking into account what market women already do and with special attention for selling on credit; Classes should take place in the market and in local languages; Recruit National service personnel for teaching on site; give them incentives to teach in the market; Training of facilitators among market women.	AMA; National Service Secretariat; VAT Secretariat.

¹ SuSu: Circle of contributors who collect the gathered sum in turns.