Gov't must regularise informal trade

Stakeholders working to improve conditions in the informal sector have advised the government and city authorities to institute pragmatic steps to standardize informal trading and protect the traders from occupational and health hazards.

Traders, mostly women, contribute a chunk to government’s revenue towards national development in the form of market tolls and licenses but sadly they live under deplorable conditions that endanger their lives with many ageing at a faster rate, the stakeholders said.

Mrs Dorcas Ansah, Coordinator of Women in Informal Employment, Globalising and Organising (WIEGO) told the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of an advocacy workshop for members of the informal sector that in spite of the sector’s immense contribution to national development (employment and revenue) members lived under harsh conditions.

The workshop, organised by WIEGO, with the People’s Dialogue, aimed at supporting informal workers to explore ways of accessing support from the government and those who profit from their work but do not contribute to improving their place of work.

Mrs Ansah said market women and traders were exposed to poor ventilation systems, perennial fire outbreaks and flooding due to improper layout of structures; as well as the scorching sun.

However, she said indiscriminate hawking along principal streets and security zones was unacceptable, saying that Ghana could learn from Thailand where they designated some days, places and time for hawking while some areas were strictly prohibited for trading.

Mr Edward Adu Aboagye, Project Manager at the Institute of Local Government Studies cited Brazil where some streets were blocked on Sundays to allow hawking activities to take place.

Mr Aboagye said there was the need for the government to coordinate its policies and strategies in order to support the formalization of the sector.

Effective regulatory framework, better services, improved business environment, and improving access to financing and infrastructure were essential in this process, he said.

It was crucial for informal traders to be consulted in the decision-making process, he said, noting that, when policymakers and city authorities actively involved the members in the planning and execution of programmes and projects tax evasion and sanitation challenges facing the nation could be reduced drastically.

Unfortunately, he said, the consultative process in that regard was lacking in Ghana and city authorities considered themselves as “islands” instead of working closely with the traders to homogenize the system.

Some members of the 40 participants taking part in the two-day training said though street hawking or vending was illegal in Ghana, city authorities licensed the traders and took taxes or market tolls from them, thereby condoning the act.

They, therefore, for called for the repeal of the law.

The participants are expected at the end of the programme to prioritise their needs regarding market conditions and hawking and submit to the Ministry of Local Government, Gender, Children and Social Protection, as well as to Accra Metropolitan Assembly for consideration.