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Vendors a global issue
Amanda Ngabirano, a lecturer of Urban Planning at Makerere University, blames the vending problem on the failure to expand Kampala city. According to her, all tension would be relaxed if Kampala is merged with neighbouring districts of the Greater Kampala Metropolitan Area with a functioning Metropolitan Physical Planning Authority.
She says this is provided for by the law and would end the current situation where street vendors see opportunities to bring their goods to a reliable city market, and do not care that they expose the public to risks like increased traffic jam and poor hygiene because they lack clean water and public toilets.
Ngabirano says what is seen in Kampala happens in many cities struggling with the challenge of street vending. She opposes the negative perceptions and failure to value the positive role of vending in Kampala. To her, eviction of vendors causes social rather than economic costs and political divisions.
“We are removing street vendors and razing market districts where vendors compete to contribute to a shared public experience,” she says, “Many times, we push to replace them with internalised retail that merely sucks value from its location near pedestrian flows which is problematic in itself.”
Ngabirano is one of many experts arguing for the successful integration of vendors into city life. She says vendors can add to the lifeblood of a thriving city and cites cities like Amsterdam in The Netherlands which has the Albert Cuyp Market; the largest outdoor market in Europe which is open every day of the week except Sunday. There is also the largest indoor market in Europe; the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, Turkey. One can find absolutely everything from furniture and electronics to fashion, cosmetics, tropical fruit and fish to books. The Netherlands also allows free markets to operate throughout the country, once a year, on King’s Day which is a national holiday.
Ngabirano recommends organising the vendors in their informal systems through allocating open market areas in which they can conduct their businesses.
KCCA interventions
Robert Kalumba, the KCCA deputy spokesperson, defends Kampala’s handling of the vending issue. He insists that city laws prohibit the sale or hawking of wares or the erection of stalls on any street, or the use of any part of the street or public place for the purpose of carrying on any trade, business or profession.
The same law enjoins KCCA to restrict, regulate and license street vendors, and Kulumba says KCCA has offered vendors a free day; Sunday to operate on one street.
It has also built several markets for vendors to ply their trade. He mentions the Shs22 billion Wandegeya market, the USAFI market along Entebbe road, and an open market in Kisenyi that is nearing construction.
Kulumba is backed by KCCA’s Sekitto who says there are 6000 vacant stalls in the city’s biggest market; St. Balikudembe or Owino.
But vendors complain that stalls in markets such as Wandegeya are too expensive at Shs150,000 rent for a month. Fresh food and vegetable stalls cost 100,000 and the clothing and consumer items shops go for Shs250,000 to Shs300,000 per month. In reality, vendors do not want to go to any market where they have to pay taxes, rent, and fees. They are instead vowing to continue operating along the streets.
Shop traders want solution
Once on the street, the vendors clash with traders who want them evicted. Naluwagga rightly says the traders sit glumly in their expensive shops without making a penny but fails to mention that the traders blame street vendors for their woes.
Issa Sekitto who is the spokesperson of KACITA, says the vendors are killing the business of over 40,000 registered traders and others unregistered who operate from markets, shopping malls and arcades within the Central Business District. He says these are about 200,000. He accuses vendors of blocking entrances to shops and causing insecurity, pickpocketing and other related crimes. He says the mayhem vendors have been causing for the last 15 years has tended to keep buyers away from the city centre and traders now want a final solution.
“We cannot have vendors undercut legally operating traders,” Sekitto says, ““Traders are exposed to all sorts of fees; licenses, rent, power, water and garbage collection among others.”
The traders’ outcry is supported by KCCA which wants to collect more taxes and organise and clean up the city.
