| dc.description.abstract | Maize is a staple food among nearly all urban and rural people in Kenya, and its effective demand has been rising. Kenya has distinct ecological zonee which marks clearly surplus and deficit areas of maize production. The distribution of maize within and between these areas is effected by two marketing subsystems:
the interregional subsystem which is controlled by the Maize and Produce Board, and the intra-district aubsybtem which is , left to competitive market forces.It has been reported by researchers and commissions of enquiry that the overall maize marketing performs poorly, and some of the indications are maize shortages and exploitative consumer and producer prices. It has not been clear whether controlled marketing has adverse effects on unrogulated local markets. For instance, it is likely that the maize movement control shelves a deficit area from a surplus area especially during the glut season in the latter.
The present research was carried out in Kirinyaga maize surplus area, and in Kitui deficit area.The main objective of the study was to collect data and analyze the structure, conduct and performance of Kitui local maize market in relation to the interregional subsystem.
Thus the role of the local markets was to be evaluated and the degree of the market imperfection determined.The data was collected on: quantities of maize moving through
Kitui, Tulia, and Kabati open-air markets, the M.P.E. and the shops; the price movements in the open-air markets; the origin of maize traded; and the transportation and storage costs. The actual data collection was carried out in November and December 1975.
It was found out that the proportionate share of maize received from Emhu and Kirinyaga areas through the M.P.B. was minimal and the illicit traders had a bigger share. Both the local and interregional subsystems are not integrated, while both have a considerable degree of monopolistic competition.The retail maize prices were fairly uniform. The producers received less than the official price while the consumers at Kitui often paid
higher than the controlled prices. Thus, the middlemen especially illicit traders, between the producer and the consumer got high profit margins which were unrelated
to the transfer cost.
For policy implication the author has recommended that the Board should assume more active role of price stabilization, the control of domestic maize marketing to be relaxed so as to leave it to competitive market forces of supply and demand | en |
