Agri-food Value Chain Development and Market Information Systems in the Caribbean

Recent years have seen increased discussion of the role of Market Information Systems (MIS) and Value Chains (VC) in economic development, especially in developing countries. This research attempts to identify how many farmers in Trinidad have used the Trinidad and Tobago National Agricultural Market Information System (NAMIS) and what are some of the key differences between users and non-users of NAMIS from a farmers’ perspective. Using data collected from a survey conducted in 2010, the following criteria were used to develop and test several hypotheses to identify those factors that contribute to use or non-use of NAMIS – size of farm, decision making responsibility, educational level, gender and age. Recently, several other CARICOM countries have expressed an interest in adopting NAMIS or versions of it for use in their countries. It is hoped that by identifying some of the differences between users and non-users of NAMIS, better MIS can be developed in the region and a stronger link can be made between MIS and Value Chain Development (VCD) to help Caribbean farmers participate in high value agri-food value chains and make the transition to market oriented agriculture