There is no evidence that the performance of agricultural development banks has improved as a result of SAPs and commercial banks remain uninterested in lending to small farmers because of the risk of default, lack of collateral and high transaction costs. Credit provided through the marketing system for inputs does not, as yet, appear to have developed. Liberalisation and privatisation should not be equated with an abdication by governments of any responsibility for agricultural service development. Funds which were formerly channelled to loss-making parastatals now need to be redirected towards providing necessary support services. Of the various measures that can enhance the development of private trading systems, well organised and properly funded market information systems are likely to be particularly effective.
Attention also needs to be paid to infrastructure provision, in particular roads and markets.
In addition, traders also require advisory services, in areas such as business management, pest control, and the provision of advice to farmers on input usage. The implementation of measures under SAPs in one country can be affected by a failure to implement similar measures in neighbouring countries. For example, if a country abolishes input subsidies, fertilizer may be smuggled from neighbouring countries which have subsidies, thus making the development of legal, private-sector fertilizer marketing difficult. It is thus increasingly important that countries formulate measures under SAPs from a sub-regional perspective. If these areas are near national borders, it may be possible to mitigate the impact of this by liberalising trade with neighbouring countries.