Regional Agricultural Trade Intelligence Network: RATIN

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RATIN was developed to help reduce regional food insecurity by strengthening the ability of markets to provide access to affordable food to poor households and improve food availability through providing adequate incentives to producers. It came out of the realization that although there are households among the food insecure that are structurally poor and are heavily dependent on food donations, there are also market-dependent households who are able to purchase food if it is available at the right time, price and quantity in the local markets through enhanced effective competition.

Competition in the supply of food commodities (maize, beans, rice and cooking bananas) is enhanced by regional trade in these commodities. However, trading opportunities for most food and livestock cross-border traders are limited by the need to plan for or justify incurring certain cross-border marketing costs in the face of uncertain receipts due to lack of timely market information.

RATIN started as a collaborative effort comprising three USAID projects. Famine Early Warning System Network Project (FEWS NET) that focuses on bringing in the crop production and trade information; and the Regional Agricultural Trade Enhancement Support Program (RATES) that deals with changing trade policy to enhance regional trade in maize. RATIN is currently hosted by Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC). It is EAGCs Market Information Service. EAGCs core function is to improve the policy and trading environment in the regional grain trade, strengthen market linkages and reduce the constraints along the grain value chain.