2.2 Transport
All marketing channels are highly influenced by the availability
of roads and transport facilities. In the history of the country's
development, the opening of a new road always induced an increase
of marketed production. When there is no access to a road,
transport is limited to headloads which is an extremely expensive
type of transportation. Profits, after transportation costs
have been deducted, shrink to zero after a few miles so that
the existence of a road is crucial for a traditional farmer
to be able to engage in marketed production. As all peasants
need cash for taxes, clothing, etc., the existence of roads
determine, to a considerable degree, the settlement pattern.
The opening of a road causes an increase in the population
density of the surrounding area.
Because of the limited number of roads, the producer does
not have the possibility of choosing a market place, as there
is only one in the vicinity. This, as well as the lack of
price information, causes a low degree of market mobility.
Markets for agricultural inputs play a minor role for the
time being. Concessions and commercial farmers have their
own arrangements while the traditional farmer hardly uses
any inputs from the markets. In the few cases where modern
inputs are used (improved seed varieties, etc.), they are
usually not purchased on the market, bur distributed by government
institutions.
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