Street vending needs legislative regulation

 
The preceding events in the capital city of Harare on vendors demand new approach with a legal backing to normalize relations which are souring daily. It is quite prudent to recognise  that street vendors are an integral and indispensible component of contemporary urban economies all over the globe that provide easy access to an assortment paraphernalia of goods and services in public spaces. They sell variety which range from fresh vegetables to prepared foods, from electronic equipment to garments and crafts, from consumer electronics to auto repairs to haircuts.
    
In view of this practical problem bedeviling this country, it is imperative to promulgate functional legislative regulatory frameworks to regulate streets vending accordingly. The community should sit down together and map out a strategy after comprehensive consultations with all stakeholders that matter in this case.

In spite all odds, it is critical to note that vendors contribute to vibrant retail market and providing a vast array of affordable, accessible goods and services to urbanites. In turn it provides a livelihood for those who have few employment options.

Some critics feel that it is imperative for authorities to create 'no transaction' zones in the capital and the prosecution of persons found doing business in those areas as a solution to the country's nagging street vending problem. This existing state of affairs in the capital demands crafting and/or re-aligning existing laws to accommodate this new defining dispensation so as to regularize and legitimate the activities of vendors. It has proven that cat and mouse relationship does not work, considering that unemployment is biting our society badly.

Therefore, what the Government needs to do in consultation with all other stakeholders is to declare certain areas in some sections of the city, for instance, the central commercial core, non-business areas, and anyone, both buyer and seller (vendor), found transacting business in those areas should be charged for violating the law.

This should get along with suitable fines, and there should be regular monitoring, rather than just carrying out a once-off operation which is done in a few days, then vendors start trickling back as soon as it is over. In this way formal traders are short-changed by illegal vendors that will continue to flourish. Pavements in their immediate proximity are invaded by vendors whom they have no power to evict by any means and measure. Their business is receding fast while illegal vendors are cashing in on their possible clients.

This surely is an unequal contest in business. Human beings are entitled to unlimited freedoms, but in this case street vendors are exercising irresponsible freedom as they violate other traders' business without any regrets. In essence one is not obliged to interfere with other peoples freedoms in the course of exercising their rights.

In deciding the fate of vendors there is need by authorities to take into consideration the results of the Informal Economy Monitoring Study (IEMS) which revealed six ways in which street vendors can strengthen their communities. These are: (i) They provide the main source of income for their households, bringing food to their families and paying school fees for their children. (ii) Informal workers have strong linkages to the formal economy. Over half the IEMS sample said they source the goods they sell from formal enterprises. Many customers work in formal jobs. (iii) Many vendors try to keep the streets clean and safe for their customers and provide them with friendly personal service. (iv) Street vendors create jobs, not only for themselves but for porters, security guards, transport operators, storage providers, and others. (v) Many generate revenue for cities through payments for licenses and permits, fees and fines, and certain kinds of taxes. (vi) Street traders add vibrancy to urban life and in many places is considered a cornerstone of historical and cultural heritage.

Some analysts have noted that in many cities, the legal and regulatory environments governing street vending impede, rather than enable, the development of a healthy informal sector in which street vendors can meet the demand for their products.

However, these pose a real challenge; local permitting laws may restrict market entry. Zoning ordinances often restrict street vendors to areas that are inconvenient to both vendors and their customers. The regulatory regimes governing where, when, and how vendors may work are often inconsistent, contradictory within a single area, or inconsistently enforced. Street vendors in many cities are forced to pay bribes or excessive fines/fees in order to work.

In urban planning decisions, the needs of street vendors and their customers are often dismissed as irrelevant to a modern city's growth. Street vendors are often evicted by force when their traditional vending sites overlap with sites for proposed development. And, like members of many sectors of the informal economy, street vendors are often left out of social protection schemes. Harare city fathers are urged to pause for a moment, and have a re-look into this predicament.