Purpose
Before jumping to a tool for a market assessment, take some time to think about why you are doing this assessment and the broader context you are operating in. The right tool for your needs will be influenced by how you want to use the information (purpose), the phase of a response you are in (timing), and the type of market you are interested in.
The three main purposes
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- To support modality selection for a program
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- To understand other aspects of a market you should consider when designing your program
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- To understand what other support the market needs in order to function better
Timing
Market assessments can take place at various stages of a response. The stage of response you are operating in will influence the purpose, scope, type and depth of information you need to gather. It will likely also influence the amount of time and resources you have available for your assessment. These are all factors that will influence the choice of assessment tool.
Pre-crisis, to feed into contingency planning and/or to inform the design of market-strengthening interventions to make markets more resilient to future shocks.
Immediately after a sudden-onset crisis, using a light-touch approach to determine which aid modalities and delivery mechanisms are most appropriate for the response, as well as to inform market-based interventions in case local markets are unable to supply the goods and services that affected populations require to cover their basic needs.
Following key developments in a protracted crisis, comparing data to a baseline using either rapid or deep-dive tools to better understand how markets have been affected by new developments and how market-based interventions may need to adapt.
During the recovery stage, to inform design of economic coping and recovery programs, to understand the impact interventions are having on local markets, and livelihoods, market-development, or market-strengthening interventions. to bring about sustainable market systemic change.
Each of the above stages presents opportunities for a different type of market assessment. A sudden-onset crisis, for instance, may benefit from a standardized, ready-made rapid assessment toolkit, such as ICRC/IFRC’s Rapid Assessment of Markets (RAM). Such toolkits will produce actionable market data as quickly as possible.
On the other hand, in a pre-crisis situation or protracted crisis practitioners may undertake a larger-scale market assessment such as an Emergency Market Mapping and Analysis (EMMA). In this case, the tools could be tailored to the specific context, shock, and market actors to gain a deeper understanding of how local markets function.
Due to the longer timeframes involved, development contexts also invite highly specific deep dives into targeted market systems, by addressing the systemic constraints. This could help affected populations increase their income, stabilise the supply of basic goods and services, and rebuild market systems that are better able to serve the most vulnerable.
