Hello, welcome to this hall on the problems of distribution of commodities in West Africa. i.e, inadequate infrastructures, inadequate storage, etc.
Table Of Contents
- Problems of distribution of commodities in West Africa.
- Economic activities that can improve effective distribution and marketing of commodities in West Africa.
- Revision Questions.
Like we stated in our previous article on channels of distribution. Middlemen (wholesalers and retailers) do encounter lot of problems in the course of a distribution of commodities in West Africa.
- Inadequate infrastructural facilities: Facilities like telephone, electricity, etc which can help to facilitate process and marketing of goods are not articles.
- Inadequate storage: This especially affect perishable products which come seasonally. During harvest, there is excess supply of this products, but there is scarcity as soon as the excess is over.
- Hoarding and speculation: The traders can create artificial scarcity for some commodities especially during festive period such as Christmas and Ramadan. Artificial scarcity can also occur as a result of change in government policies. This disrupts the distributive process and increase price unnecessarily.
- Packaging problems: The packaging of goods is not standardized. This may result in damage or loss in transit.
- Inadequate transport system: Poor transport system also affects commodity distribution and marketing in the country. The roads are so bad that commodities sustain great damage due to accidents.
- Long chain of distribution: There are too many middlemen. The numerous links along the chain of distribution make the price of commodities to increase considerably.
- Insecurity on the roads: Distribution is affected as a result of the activities of armed bandits on the roads.
- Inadequate information: The producers, sellers and buyers do not get adequate information regarding the prevailing market conditions.
- Administrative bottlenecks in the collection and handling of goods: Excessive delay in the supply and delivery of commodities is a common feature in the West African Distribution System. Processing of necessary papers at supply points or depots causes considerable loss of time.
Economic activities that can improve effective distribution and marketing of commodities in West Africa
- Establishment of more market places: The establishment of more market places in rural areas will make commodities easily available for purchase.
- Encouragement of Co-operative societies: The formation of co-operative societies should be encouraged as they help to buy commodities in bulk and sell to consumers at cheaper prices.
- Establishment of a national supply company: The establishment of a national supply company like N.N.S.C will go a long way to stabilizing prices and make goods readily available.
- Construction of roads: This will help to move harvested products from the rural areas to urban centers.
- Provision of storage facilities: Provision of adequate storage facilities is necessary to prevent wastage and ensure that goods produced are not taking to the market at once.
- Reduction in the number of middlemen: Reducing the number of middlemen will go a long way towards reducing the prices of commodities.
- Establishment of marketing boards: Marketing boards should be established to handle the distribution of certain agricultural products.
- Improvement in communication system: the communication system should be improved in order to provide adequate information about the market situation to buyers and sellers. Visit my other blog on [system and forms of communication here]
Revision Questions
- What are the problems encountered in distribution of commodities in West Africa?
- State the economic activities that can improve effective distribution and marketing of commodities in West Africa.