Liberia Trader Survey Report

Since November 2014, FEWS NET has worked with Mobile Accord (GeoPoll) to conduct SMS-based trader surveys in Liberia and Sierra Leone to gather information on the status of market activities and operating costs in areas made inaccessible by the Ebola epidemic.  Liberia and Sierra Leone are FEWS NET remote monitoring countries. In remote monitoring countries, analysts typically work from a nearby regional office, relying on a network of partners for information. As less data may be available, remote monitoring reports may have less detail than FEWS NET presence countries The SMS-based survey results serve to corroborate key informant and partner reports on market activities and serve as inputs to FEWS NET’s integrated food security analysis on the impacts of the Ebola outbreak.

• Between November 3-17, 2014 FEWS NET collected two rounds of trader survey data using a SMS-based platform through GeoPoll. The sample includes over 600 small to large-scale traders across the 15 counties of Ebola-affected Liberia. The first round of data collection focused on identifying a sample of traders to monitor over five subsequent rounds of data collection and their characteristics including location, typical activities, and size. During the second round, respondents were asked questions about current market activities.

• Over 35 percent of respondents were cassava traders, followed by palm oil (26 percent), imported rice (23 percent), and local rice (14 percent). This distribution reflects the structure of agricultural markets in Liberia, with higher concentration and barriers to entry to imported rice trading (FEWS NET, USAID-BEST).

• During the week of November 17th, over 40 percent of survey respondents reported that weekly markets operated at reduced levels or were closed. Market closures were most often a result of measures taken by local authorities. Reduced market activities were reported by the largest percentage of traders in Lofa, Bong, Montserrado, Margibi, and Nimba counties, areas where the Ebola outbreak has been most intense.

• Survey respondents in each county reported lower than normal stock levels. More than 40 percent of respondents reported lower than normal stock levels in five counties. Higher than normal transportation costs and travel restrictions are the  most frequent trade barriers.