It provides information on how to carry out surveys, prepare layouts and building designs, choose equipment and assess a project's technical and financial feasibility. It is not a guide to marketing in general, nor to the design of specialised facilities such as wholesale markets. The Guide uses a systematic approach in which the design and formulation process that will need to be followed is broken down into a series of steps. These steps are summarised in Box 1 and developed in detail in the following chapters. There is a natural wish to be able to purchase foodstuffs and other goods at one location and preferably under a single roof.
Markets are an important component of the marketing chain from farm level to consumer.
Efforts made in improving production and reducing post-harvest losses as well as investments in agricultural infrastructure, such as storage, have only a limited chance of providing benefits if the last stage in the marketing chain, retailing, is not able to pass on to the consumer the economies achieved in the previous stages. The design process for preparing a market development project 1. Collecting data on agricultural production and urban consumption Making surveys of existing markets, retail facilities and traffic levels 2. Calculating the project's financial and economic returns Evaluating the legal, environmental and social impact of the project Defining the mode of implementation, sources of finance and actions needed 5. The retailer is directly in contact with consumers and knows their needs.