"Livestock Price-Tally: What residents of Twic East County said about 'Cattle economies'?"

As I sat down with both Barach Ajak and Garang Kuir of World Food Programme (WFP) to find out the fluctuation bubble of livestock prices in dry season and as well as in wet season, they said that they no longer keep the records of livestock price here in Panyagor town office, however they have given responsibilities to hands of the WFP Field staff monitors who are mostly based in Bor Town and which are always stayedmobile.

Barach also recommended that I should go to Town County Council Manyok Ayier, perhaps to see whether they keep track on the fluctuation of livestock price over the years or in those seasons: Dry season and Wet season. He said that it would be better if I were in Bor Town since these Field staff monitors go to place where there is no network to contact with them, where all of these records, can be accessed when needed. 

Both Barach and Garang Kuir added that the price of livestock varied from one season to another. For dry season, or in the summer season, the price of livestock dropped miserably and drastically since supply increased----that means there are more heads of cattles in the hands of people in the localities, to which the demand dropped extremely low buble in the dry season. 

However in the raining seasons supply is terribly plunged and demand to buy livestock in the swift market, on one hand,skyrocketed and increasingly cliff over-hang passed the dryseason livestock pricing standards. This made the ‘rainy-wet seasons’ price of livestock seriously increased because there is the low supply of livestock crippled in from Ayod County and therefore began to slow down local cattle economies’.

With ‘anathema’ of high insecurity in the area, that made pricingsubsequently started to fluctuate at homestead localities such as Panyagor town, Twic East County swift cattle market. Cattle businessmen and vendor people who bring heads of cattle from Ayod County, Jonglei State—South Sudan were extremely frightened since there is ‘high insecurity’ crippled in the way to Panyagor town, Twic East County. Only courageous cattle vendors travelled to these risky areas to buy heads of livestocks in Ayod County and bring them to Panyagor town, Twic East County for bargains re-sale in the swift cattle market put in the place. 

There are many cattle vendors in the Jonglei State that run cattle economies in the state, although they do not expect to gain high volume profits in return. Of course, these cattle vendors kept cattle economies running because that is what they enjoyed and chose to run instead of other swift business professionals-----throwing up swift shops and sit in them without no more mobilities as they encountered in the ways. 

Cattle vendors run livestock economies because it is much easier to run and raise more money and subsequently opened a sitting swift shops to which you no longer in much danger threast as it was. I saw many young youth men travelling from Bor South County acrossing Twic East County and Duk County to Ayod County---the Nuer ethnic groups strongholds where they have tons of livestocks with much cheaper pricing for bargain buying and re-selling when you get back to the either Duk County, Twic East County and of course, Bor South County. These cattle vendors make as many trips as they can so that you can raise more money in the cattle economies and subsequently constructed big swift shops where they only buy goods and products for sale without no more fear and threats in front.

These cattle vendors experienced twin barriers: high insecurity in the way and seasonal change effect crippled. As they (cattle vendors and caravans) traveled from one County to other, they experienced cattle raiding threats and insecurity in the ways, which made it susceptible and vulnerable to maintain cattle economies for the long term since they fear their lives and welfare in the cattle businesses. 

And when seasons changed, it made cattle pricing flunctuated and therefore it put cattle caravan vendors in trouble since theyno longer gaining more profit on the heads of cattles they have bought from one given County like Ayod County and et cetera. As cattle vendors became aware of seasonal pricing fluctuation, they put much effort and commitment in the dry seasons to buy as many heads of cattle as they wanted so that they will not make any trip to Ayod County in the rainy seasons since they already bought quite number of heads of cattle in the dry seasons to keep them running in the rainy seasons when infrastructure roads were much safer and dry as wel.

Focus Group Discussion #1

Questions: 

Are money economies better than the cattle economy?

Advantage:

Cattle are not bad since they do a lot of things like supporting children and also used in marriage as dowries for bride-wealth sharing with her family and extended family. It appeared that most people in the Dinka ethnic group society struggled a lot to find and buy as many cattle as they wanted so that we will re-use those livestock they bought for marriage ceremonies of their owns and tithed in the grown-up children’s marriage arrangements, especially for adults men. 

As adult men eloped an adult-woman from internally ethnicityor from other ethnic group clans, you will need to stand on your feets firmly to give as many heads of cattles to remain with the recently ‘arrival bride’ for your grown-up boys. Of course, you have to raise as many heads of livestocks of your owns before you get help and endowments from your extended families for bad case scenario when you are not wealthier family, but fall short in your knees off the ladder of social stratification pyramids either you are considered to concide with the lower class struggles or with the working family class groups. 

Disadvantage:

People died because of cattle. Cattle raiders always come and local people died in protection of their cattle from being taken in the hands of enemies. And they do that to die as a result since your heads of livestocks are raids, you will stump in the pit of vulnerabilities and susceptibilities whereby you will not able to support yourself and families as well..

Money: Why money good?

Having money in hands is not bad and anytime you got some problems you can fix it using money in hands.  For example, people who are educated nowadays with jobs are problem-free since they have jobs in comparison with people who have cattle as a mean of support. Group stressed that sometime money can kill. There are people out there, who can rob and in the scene they can either kill you or let you free. For example, people in the community today who have money in hands walks cautiously so that they do not get kill.