Bulawayo Council Plans To Move 4,000 Vendors Out Of City Centre

The City of Bulawayo is pushing to move vendors out of the city centre. The plan could affect more than 4,000 informal traders.

The council has tried to do this before, but vendors have raised concerns. They fear they will lose customers if they are moved to some of the set sites, especially those on the outskirts of the CBD.

Speaking during a joint tour to look at the city’s vending crisis, Town Clerk Christopher Dube referred to recent comments by Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe.

The Minister described Bulawayo, Harare and Chitungwiza as being in the “Intensive Care Unit” because of growing problems with urban management.

“The Minister of Local Government announced that Bulawayo and other cities are in the ICU. As leaders, we need to look into that together and try to correct some of these issues,” Dube said.

Dube said uncontrolled vending is one of the biggest problems facing the city and urged authorities to take firm action.

He revealed that council surveys show around 4,100 vendors are operating in the affected areas. He said many of them could be moved to other approved trading sites, such as the Bhaktas’ vending site that the council has already identified.

“The site has the capacity to accommodate about 2,000 vendors, while other locations are also being prepared. If they go there, people will know where to find them when they need to buy their commodities,” Dube said.

Judith Ncube, Minister of State and Devolution Affairs for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, concurred with Dube that the issue must be dealt with quickly and decisively.

She said trading in undesignated areas is a health risk, even for the customers who buy from the vendors.

Ncube also raised concerns about the growing number of trucks and delivery vehicles doing retail business in the city centre instead of just delivering goods and leaving.

More: CITE