CARE © Sankalpa Acharya/CARE India Rapid Market Assessment Report, Kumbi Woreda, East Hararghe Zones, Oromia Region, Ethiopia CARE E thiopia September, 2020 Author: Serkalem Getachew: Food Security and Livelhood Advisor, at CARE Ethiopia 1 Contents 1. Background ........................................................................................................................................................... 3 2. Objectives .............................................................................................................................................................. 3 3. Methodology ......................................................................................................................................................... 4 4. Limitations ............................................................................................................................................................. 4 5. Result and Discussion ............................................................................................................................................ 4 5.1. Community priority needs and availability of commodities in the market needed by the shock-affected population. .................................................................................................................................................................... 4 5.2. Market Functionality ..................................................................................................................................... 6 5.3. Financial services are available and accessible ..................................................................................................... 6 5.4. Market constraints and market response capacity ............................................................................................... 7 6. Conclusions and Recommendations ..................................................................................................................... 9 6.1. Conclusions ............................................................................................................................................................ 9 6.2. Recommendations ................................................................................................................................................. 9 Table 1: Priority needs of food and non-food commodities by amount required per month. ................................... 5 Table 2: Summary of markets, frequencies of market, and distance from the target community ............................. 5 Table 3: Traders stock Expandability capacity depend on the needs ........................................................................... 7 Table 4: Key commodities in stock before and after the shock .................................................................................... 8 Table 5: Frequency of restocking before and now ........................................................................................................ 8 Table 6: Price changes ................................................................................................................................................... 8 September 2020: market assessment 2 1. Background East Hararghe zone is one of the 20 zones of Oromia regional state located in the Eastern part of the region, with a total population of 3,244,378. The zone has 20 woredas, of which 5 of them are pastoralists, and the remaining 9 woredas are agro-pastoralists / depends on a mixed farming system (agriculture and livestock production). East Hararghe zone boarding with Harari and Somali Regional state and Dire Dawa City administrative council, the zone shares a very long boundary covering about 1410 km with the Somali Regional State. Out of the 20 woredas in the zone, nine woredas, namely Chinaksen, Gusum, Babile, Midhega Tola, Meyu, Kumbi, Goro Gutu, Metta, and Jarso woredas share boundaries with the Somali region. Kumbi woreda is one of the woredas found in the East Hararghe zone, located 267 km away from Harar city. Most of the people's livelihoods are pastoralists. The woreda has 14 kebeles with 54,458 total populations. Due to the last couple of years, ethnic conflict between Somali and Oromo people has affected the people’s living system. Out of 14 kebeles, almost peoples in 11 kebeles were displaced and living in four IDP sites that are Mino, Kerri, Haro Boren, and Burka Negeya. Currently, 8701 IDP households (4245 Male and 4450 Female) in this woreda and they are living in congested and inadequate shelter conditions. Out of which, 4045 HHs need to return to their original place, but the remaining is not interested in returns back. Hence, before responding to the shelter and NFI needs to the IDPs through cash, CARE plan for conducting this rapid market assessment aiming at gaining an understanding of the ability of the market to respond to an increasing demand due to extra cash injection and the levels of target peoples access to the market. Thus, to provide general information on market conditions and to have a better understanding of the needs of IDPs, specifically in Kumbi Woredas of CARE implementing a shelter project, the community interviews and assessment conducted at field level and the finding summary noted in this report. 2. Objectives The specific objectives of this rapid market assessment were: To have a better understanding about the needs of a community where the project is planning to implement cash assistance. To see the capacity and stability of local markets in responding to the growing demands of communities’ due to cash injected in the local economy. To identify effective cash delivery mechanisms September 2020: market assessment 3 3. Methodology The primary data sources for the assessment are representatives selected from the community, key informants from the government, and traders. Pre-designed checklists were used to collect information from the three data sources community, key informants, and traders. The tool prepared for traders allowed them to understand the capacity of the market to respond to the demand to be created through cash intervention. Accordingly, nine community discussions were held comprising of 4 male and 5 females drawn from different sections of the community groups. To deepen our understanding of the objectives of the present study, we also conducted three key informant interviews with the government representatives, and 11 traders were interviewed, where eight retailers from Kumbi Mino market. In addition, to understand the nearest source market capacity, we have interviewed three wholesalers in Bedeno woreda, Burka, and Bedeno markets. Regarding the data analysis, we followed a thematic content analysis procedure where transcriptions was made for the intended objectives. All the above mentioned data sources used to yield rich contextual and content details related to the objectives of this rapid market assessment in Kumbi woredas of the East Hararge zone. 4. Limitations Lack of availability of secondary data to compare timeline data. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the planned time to conduct the assessment was very difficult to bring the community participate. Traders fear providing price information assuming that we are from the government taxation office. Lack of wholesaler in the project implementation woreda. 5. Result and Discussion 5.1. Community priority needs and availability of commodities in the market needed by the shock- affected population. Almost all FGD participants from the woreda have ranked food items, cooking oil, cooking pot, Kettle and jerrycan, as their priority needs. They listed their priority by item and amount required for Household per month. September 2020: market assessment 4 Table 1: Priority needs of food and non-food commodities by amount required per month. Key commodity Amount needed per month for Price of the HH(5 person) Item Sorghum, 20 Kg 20 ETB/Kg Pasta 20 Pieces 25ETB/ 500gm Rice 15 Kg 40 ETB/kg Cooking oil 5 litter 35 ETB/litter Sugar 2 kg 35 ETB/kg Cooking pot 2 (More than a year) 300 kettle 1 For long time 300 Jerrycan(20 litter) 2 For long time 70 Hand washing Jug 1 per household 30 Washing basin 1 per household 35 In Kumbi woreda, there is only one market place which is the Mino market, and it is a principal market for the woreda that the majority of the peoples are using. In this market, there is the only retailer who is supplying the food commodities that is needed by the communities a single retailer could serve more than 1000 peoples per day. In Mino market, food commodity is only available. As the FGD participants mentioned, the price of the food items also expensive. However, there are two alternative marketplaces in Burka and Bedeno located 120 or 150 KM away from Kumbi woreda, respectively. As some of the people mentioned to buy the non-food items, they should have traveled to Burka and Bedeno woreda markets. In these two markets, food and non-food items are available, and the traders mentioned that as they could supply the non-food items to Kumbi woredas if needed. These markets serve as a source market for the Mino market traders since the retailers in Kumbi woredas are getting the commodities from these markets. However, since both markets are far from the woreda majority of the communities could not able to access these markets. Besides, due to increased transportation costs, even the retailer’s demands on the items they were buying is reduced. Table 2: Summary of markets, frequencies