Liberia Trader Survey Report Round 15

Between November 2014 and November 2015, FEWS NET worked with Mobile Accord (GeoPoll) to conduct fifteen rounds of SMS-based trader surveys in Liberia and Sierra Leone on the status of market activities and operating costs. Liberia and Sierra Leone are FEWS NET remote monitoring countries. In remote monitoring countries, analysts typically work from a 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. The first round of data collection identified a sample of traders to monitor fundamental market characteristics (Table 1). During the second through sixth rounds, the survey focused on market activities, while the subsequent rounds inquired about both market and agricultural activities. Data was collected on a bi-weekly basis for rounds 2-6 and on a monthly basis thereafter.

• This report provides a summary of findings from a FEWS NET trader survey using a SMS-based platform through GeoPoll during the week of November 2nd, 2015 (fifteenth round of data collection). The sample includes 250 small to large-scale traders across 14 counties in Liberia (Figure 1).

• Thirty-three percent of respondents were local rice traders and 28 percent were imported rice traders, followed by cassava (23 percent) and palm oil traders (16 percent).

• During the week of November 2nd, 22 percent of survey respondents reported that the most important market in their area operated at reduced levels (Figures 2 and 3). However, only three traders reported market closures.

• Twenty-four percent of traders indicated that market supplies of main commodities were lower than the previous month (Figure 4).

• High transport costs was the most frequently cited reason for reduced market supplies compared to the previous month (Figure 5).

• Sixty-eight percent of respondents indicated that the current primary agricultural activity is harvesting (Figure 9). Fifty-nine percent of respondents reported that agricultural activities were normal and on time (Figure 10).

• Twenty-nine percent of respondents reported less agricultural wage opportunities compared to normal at this time (Figure 8). Twenty-five percent of traders reported that their cash crop sales were lower than the previous month (Figure 7).