Are Staple Food Markets in Africa Efficient? Spatial Price Analyses and Beyond

The main objective of this paper is to examine whether the staple food markets in Africa are efficient. It does so by outlining a conceptual framework for understanding spatial food price variation, summarizing the results from existing studies in market integration in sub-Saharan Africa, and providing evidence from recently conducted surveys on the determinants of market efficiency. The paper is organized following this sequence and concludes with a summary and policy implications.