Reducing poverty through improved agro-logistics in a fragile country : findings from a trader survey in South Sudan

South Sudan is a fragile country.South Sudan is one of the most food insecure countries in the world.Conflict and long standing economic and social changes are disrupting agricultural production, markets, and community livelihoods, which are consequently increasing food insecurity and poverty rates in South Sudan.Though the current macro-economic crisis threatens to worsen food security even further, it also presents an opportunity to tap into South Sudan’s vast agricultural potential.Conflict sensitive efforts to improve agro-logistics in South Sudan are key to increasing the availability of agricultural commodities in markets, which could contribute to better food security.The evidence base on approaches to conflict sensitivity in weak and fragile state situations like South Sudan highlights how agricultural commodity markets are complex sites of authority and control. This literature also suggests that agricultural commodity markets are regulated by a variety of formal and informal institutions that structure interactions within groups of traders. This includes formal legislation and less visible factors such as social regulation, that might be more likely to function along lines such as class, ethnic identity and gender. This literature also notes how markets can often be ‘sites of violence in their own right’ that can continue to embed and perpetuate inequality. With this broad understanding in mind, this study raises vital considerations about the logics of power in South Sudan’s agro-logistics system.This study is unique as it recommends conflict sensitive interventions that can improve selected market linkages between food surplus and food deficit areas.The World Bank’s South Sudan High Frequency Market Price Survey, a Market Linkages Survey (MLS), and existing literature provide quantitative and qualitative data to inform interventions. Various data sources have been used to assess the current situation of food markets in South Sudan. The Market Price Survey provides weekly price data from 2012 onwards for several markets and food products in South Sudan. Price data is used to assess whether and how markets are integrated in South Sudan.Following the price analysis, qualitative data on various factors that may have contributed to the integration or isolation of markets is presented. This data was collected by the MLS and administered to over 500 traders across 14 towns. The findings from these data is analyzed in tandem with literature from various sources to identify suitable market linking interventions.The recommendations in this document are based on a review of the available literature and food price and market linkage data. Part one provides a background on South Sudan’s agriculture, trade and trade barriers. Part two uses weekly market prices to determine market integration preceded by reviewing food prices and the differentials in food prices for different markets and agricultural commodities. Results from the market linkages survey are presented in Part three. Recommendations are discussed in Part four.