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Mauritius: BP 247- "Marchands Ambulants" - Struggling for a decent living
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L'Express (Port Louis)
24 August 2007
Posted to the web 24 August 2007
Faweez Hossanee
Port Louis
Street vendors are again in the limelight after the destruction of stalls near LIC building in Port Louis. According to police, the exercise was carried out, follo-wing a complaint from the tenants of this building, to ensure security in the area. It is often believed that concentration of hawkers attract crowds and therefore becomes breeding grounds for pickpockets.
This does not mean that, in the fight against crime, innocent hawkers should be terrorised!
It should be understood that the issue of street vendors is first and foremost a major social one. (...) People should realise that behind every street vendor lies a family looking for a decent mode of living. In Mauritius, the general perception is that street vendors exist only in Port-Louis. In fact, street hawkers exist all from Goodlands to Rivière-du-Rempart, from Flacq to Mahebourg, Rose-Hill to Vacoas and even at SSRN Hospital! In the latter case, hawkers have firmly installed their makeshift stalls all along the main road, opposite the hospital, and sell everything from fast food to clothing! One may wonder how come sanitary officers have never deemed it necessary to question whether basic hygiene conditions are met by fast food handlers near the hospital, especially when exposed to exhaust fumes from buses and to passers-by, consisting mainly of hospital patients.
People do not wish to be street hawkers. They are compelled to be so. The life of a street vendor is not a rosy one. None would like to stand under the scorching sun, persuading passers-by to purchase their wares for a meagre profit. Unfortunately, not everyone is lucky enough to find a job in the public sector(...) Not everyone owns a plot of agricultural land. Not everyone finds a good job in the private sector. And not everyone can aspire to become a successful entrepreneur. When all opportunity doors are closed, one turns to the streets for a livelihood. The job is tough, one has to play hide and seek with the police to avoid one's wares being seized. The public does not always cooperate. It is not always easy to find customers.
The "scourge" of street vending cannot be eradicated overnight. The authorities have no moral right to deprive hawkers of their livelihood without immediately finding alternative employment for them. Statistics show that the unemployed figures stand at 60,000. This figure probably does not include the tens of thousands of street traders. Street traders are part of the economy. Government perceives duty on the goods sold. VAT has been charged at source. It is better that people at least become hawkers and try to earn a living instead of being thieves and steal from others.
At a time when government is struggling to save the sugar and textile sectors, it is essential that it also identifies ways on how to assist street vendors. We keep hearing that so many jobs will be created. 8,000 jobs, 25,000 jobs, "plein-emploi" by 2010, etc. But the problem is that the existing marchand ambulants are not being given the necessary facilities to train and become suitable for the new jobs to be created. There is a mismatch of skills. Other sectors of the economy benefit from all types of facilities, various schemes by the concerned ministry, DBM loan facilities, etc. Hawkers, on the other end, are left on their own: no support, no training, no benefits, no facilities, nothing.
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Street trading is a worldwide phenomenon. It forms part of the folklore of a country. Street vendors operate from Mumbai to Manchester, from New York to Nairobi. In some countries, street trading is one of the multiple tourist attractions (...)
Mauritius has the potential to develop street businesses. They just need to get organised and innovate, with the assistance of the government. Shopping malls alone do not attract tourists. Fast food stalls exist everywhere and these sellers are trying their best to earn a decent living. Rather than discourage them, the government should assist hawkers in upgrading all their stalls and construct appropriate kiosks equipped with all facilities such as water and electricity, to enable these traders deliver quality products in a hygienic environment. These hawkers will then feel secured and confident, and pay a monthly rent and a yearly Licence Fee to the authorities. The public will also benefit from an organised system of hawking. Footpaths would be liberated.
To fully integrate hawkers into the formal system, the attitude towards them should change. They should be considered as economic agents just like any other trade or business.
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