Markets and Marketing remains one of the biggest causes of poverty amongst the East African Community member states just like it is, within the countries in many developing countries of the world. In fact, the biggest chip the developed countries have over the developing countries is having and controlling the biggest market share at all the three levels highlighted above.
In the East African Community, agriculture and all the agri-business goods and services remain the comparative advantage of many, if not all of the member countries. Majority of the people, live on subsistence farming, relying mainly on rain fed agriculture. This means that there will be many producers when the rains come: Meaning at a particular time, the supply will be in excess of the consumption power, if other remains constant as they always been. And, because the producer trade in mostly un-processed food stuffs within and across the borders of their countries, all the perishable produce goes to waste when the demand drops.
Post-harvest handling and Packaging of the agricultural products is still poor that they can hardly compete for the market. Although the attempt to add value to the produce, has had an impact but a lot more can be done to meet the quality the market needs. Even the cottage industries and factories producing some secondary products also need more input to meet the competitive global market needs at least in the designing and final in looks of the products.
Transporting of the merchandise from the country side in all the East African countries has also been a major handicap stalling the projected increase in agricultural production and productivity within the region. The road network is inexistent or where they are, they are hardly motorable. This means that getting the products to the market has been very difficult.
Last but not least, previous efforts by the communities involved in agri-business, just like many other businesses were very shy, by omission or commission to use the different media/ communication platforms at their disposal to publicize their goods and services. So, the vital production and marketing information remained in the hands of very few people that it was very difficult for the communities to prosper.
The grey areas highlighted above probably explains why up to date,
- Millions of tons of agricultural produce go to waste
- Locally manufactured goods as consumer goods or production inputs can hardly find the suitable market to get the rewards of their sweat.
- The need, therefore, for value addition on our agriculture, and most importantly opening up more physical or virtual markets cannot be underestimated.
Mutukula regional market shall come with the answer, combining consumers and vendors from the over seven countries in the East African Community onto one platform to exchange the goods and services where they each, have a comparative advantage. These forces of demand and supply will also give rise the other consumer businesses to make use of the every surplus, and turn it into valuable items.
The market will have several platforms, including business theatres, clinics for enterprise selections, exhibition grounds, tourism and leisure parks and sports arenas to mention but a few to increase the traffic of the potential consumers and everything else that comes with the modern market. It will be a true common market and the transactions will modulate the language and the currency to be used in the common market.
Mutukula Regional Market will also increase the competitiveness, that all the participants’ do what it takes to attract but also satisfy the customers’ needs. The same support / motivation will also improve the other manufactured products- metal, clay, glass and timber products that still lack the finesse to compete with the imported goods.
The plan to have recreation grounds, hotels, restaurants, sports grounds and theatre amongst other facilities will increase the traffic, amongst whom tourists who will spread the news wide and far about this magnums facility.
Facilities like coolers to store fruits / milk/ beef/ leafy vegetables due for distant markets will increase the shelf life of such produce which have been perishing away. This will increase the profitability of the ventures to all the actors in the value chain.
Last but not least, MRM plans to use the various media/ communication platforms immensely as one of the ways to add value to the goods and services from the market. This will increase on the flow of information which has been and remains a big handicap to markets and the marketing of the different products from the region. The information flow, using up to date services will give the prices of the various agro products, Stock available at the market, call for suppliers to meet the various quarter,
Suitability of the Location, Political / Economic Environment
Mutukula regional market will be strategically located in Mutukula town- Kyotera District, bordering between Uganda and Tanzania. It has been established in time, to reap from the fast growing business, following the conversion of the border crossing between Mutukula, Uganda and Mutukula, Tanzania into a one-stop-border-post (OSBP). The post is open 24 hours every day of the year, to clear the growing traffic of commercial vehicles, passengers, luggage, merchandise and pedestrians crossing the borderline from either country.
By road, the town is approximately 81 kilometers (50 mi), extreme south-west of Masaka, the largest city in the sub-region, and nearly 211 kilometers (131 mi), south-west of Kampala, the capital and largest city of Uganda. By air, it is 45minutes away from Kajansi –the nearest commercial airfield from Kampala, to Mutukula airfield. The water transport over the expansive Lake Victoria will bring more people from inland Tanzania and greatly shortens the distance from Kenya.
On the Tanzanian side, the 10km stretch of electricity constructed to service the One Stop Border Post on the Tanzania side, has changed the lifestyles of the communities greatly. For example, permanent structures for homesteads and businesses have started forming and the population towards Bunazi nearly 20 Km, away from the border has also multiplied more than three fold. All these, and more will form part of the strong demand and supply forces for the products in the Mutukula Regional Market.
Rwanda, Burundi and DR. Congo can also access the market by road with ease, for as long as the supply and demand forces remain vibrant at the facility. The beauty is that trade relations amongst the different partner states have lived longer than the East African Common market and therefore Mutukula regional market is only coming to upgrade the process.
