Somali regional state is known for livestock production. : A significant number of pastoralists rely on livestock and their by-products as major livelihood. Despite the potential relevance of livestock production in improving the living conditions of pastoralists, little was done to understand the structure, conduct and performance of the livestock market. This study aimed to analyze the structure, conduct and performance of live goats marketing by selecting two districts from Korahe zone of Somali regional state. Cross sectional survey research design was applied for this study and data from primary and secondary sources were complemented through direct observations from the field along the market chain. Both traders and pastoralists providing information through structured interviews. The data was analyzed by using market structure–conduct-performance framework. Pastoralists, Commission men, Local collectors, small and Large Scale Traders, Hotels and Restaurants were found to be major market actors. Four firms concentration ratio (CR4) result indicated that live goats marketing was characterized by a very less concentrated traders with traders concentration ratio of 18.99%. In relation to price setting mechanism, the price of live goats was set by both buyers and sellers however in case of sellers the negotiation is done by commission men. The highest total gross marketing margin was 45.69 % when producers sold goat to local collectors through commission men and then to small scale traders, medium scale traders, and hotel and restaurants until reaches to consumers. Based on the findings, the study area has tremendous potential and the contributions of commission men in facilitating the marketing activity are incredible. Therefore, the government should create market linkage with rest of the world to improve the income and living standard of pastoralistsand attention should to be given to reduce the problems through supporting commission men in order to reduce production and marketing cost.

Keywords: Marketing Margin, Commission Men, Pastoralists, Live Goats