We need regulatory body on street vending, Ex-Mayor
THERE is need for a regulatory body to completely Curb Street vending, former Lusaka Mayor, Daniel Chisenga has said.
In an interview with the Daily Nation yesterday, Mr Chisenga suggested that organizations such as the Street Vendors Association of Zambia (SAZ) need to put their house in order by working closely with line ministries dealing with sanitation to stop street vending.
Mr Chisenga’s comment comes in the wake of the resurfacing of street vendors in some parts of Lusaka compounds including the Central Business District (CBD).
“What we need is a permanent watchdog body that will help the Ministries of Health, Local Government and Home Affairs to control and completely wipe out street vending. It is not good to see street vendors defying the ban because it is on record that street vending is illegal,” Mr Chisenga said.
On Monday a riot almost erupted at Lusaka’s Kamwala trading area after rowdy vendors among them a woman who stripped naked refused to be removed from the streets for illegal trading.
Lusaka City Council (LCC) public relations officer %renda Katongola confirmed the development to the Daily Nation saying the incident happened after LCC police conducted a joint operation with state police in the area which was also extended to Downtown Mall and Mtendere compound.
The LCC has since said it will demolish all illegal makeshift stands being erected in CBD.
A statutory instrument that Tualifies street Yending as illegal in Zambia has since been enacted.
The Street Vending and Nuisance amendment regulation act was signed on February 9th which allows local authorities to prosecute and charge anyone found trading on the streets.
It is aimed at helping maintain cleanliness and good sanitation on the streets.
The act was previously in existence to guide the local authority on how to handle street vendors.