How much will my goats fetch today?
Daily market prices for livestock is vital information for Somali herders who survive on earnings from livestock rearing. Through broadcast by radio, the herders are told when and where they can earn the most on their animals
Launched by the IMS-supported Radio Ergo, the new service is available online and every Friday in the radio’s broadcasts.
A large part of Somalis live on earnings from livestock rearing. Knowing the prices, which are gathered from local authorities and livestock sellers themselves, makes it possible for camel and goat herders across the country to decide when and where to sell their animals to get the best earnings for their often struggling families.
Information is power
Radio Ergo’s information services comes at a much needed time after Somalia’s ongoing drought has affected the local production of food and livestock:
“It’s interesting to listen on the radio to the livestock prices. The long drought has affected our local production and now people depend a lot on imported food, so it is good for us to know the real prices at main markets”, says Abdalla Haji Osman, a 65-year-old camel and goat herder from the central Somalia area of Beletweyne.
Highlighting the information service’s relevance for local farmers, Radio Ergo’s local stringer in Somalia’s north-central Mudug region, Hassan Burtinle says:
“The pastoralists normally complain about poor knowledge of the real costs when they bring their livestock to the market, so when they are able to hear the prices on the radio, no big livestock traders can cheat them by giving them incorrect prices for their few animals.”
An indicator of hardship
Also launched this month by Radio Ergo is a price index on essential staple food items such as sugar, rice and spaghetti. Every Saturday the index is published on the radio’s website to give locals a chance to make decisions on what to buy and how to plan their resources.
It also gives local traders an opportunity to keep an eye on price fluctuations and possible pending shortages of food items in certain areas, while acting as an indicator for levels of hardship faced by ordinary Somalis as they try to feed their families.
The livestock prices are available on Radio Ergo’s website here alongside the market food prices.
Radio Ergo is supported by International Media Support through its daughter company IMS Productions ApS. Radio Ergo is on the air daily, broadcasting valuable humanitarian information on protection, human rights, conflict prevention, health issues, livestock and farming, and other key issues.
