Masaka City authorities order vendors off streets
Street vendors operate on one lane of Edward Avenue in Masaka City which city authorities say must stop. Photo | RICHARD KYANJO.
What you need to know:
- The order comes at a time when there is a general outcry from city traders along Edward Avenue and Elgin Street over the operations of Mubuulo traders which caused a total disruption of their businesses particularly.
Masaka City clerk has asked his counterpart in Nyendo/Mukungwe Municipality to ensure the restoration of trade order in Masaka City's central market and along Edward Avenue.
Mr Vincent Okurut, the Masaka City clerk in a letter dated March 26, 2024, ordered the division town clerk to ensure the removal of all street vendors who have been operating along Edwards Avenue from Wednesday to Friday under the guise of open-air weekly market commonly known as Mubuulo market, which disrupts businesses and traffic flow in the area.
The order comes at a time when there is a general outcry from city traders along Edward Avenue and Elgin Street over the operations of Mubuulo traders which caused a total disruption of their businesses particularly.
“The purpose of this letter is to request that Mubuulo markets are organised in a manner that doesn’t inconvenience other road users and businesses along Edwards Avenue and hence be only permitted inside the market by the end of this month,’’ the letter reads in part.
There has been consistent disagreement on the issue of street vendors with city political leaders issuing contradicting orders to the vendors.
In October last year, Ms Florence Namayanja, the city mayor with the help of then Masaka City clerk Mr Godfrey Bemanyisa banned vendors from selling their goods on city streets and allocated them an open space along Kyotera Masaka highway near Masaka High Court premises.
But later, the council of Nyendo/Mukungwe Municipality passed a resolution that Okayed the operations of vendors along Edward Avenue from Wednesday to Friday claiming that the ban had affected their revenue base. It remains to be seen whether the latest directive will be enforced.
Masaka Central Market, where authorities want all vendors to operate, was officially opened in August last year. The market sits on a 2.5-acre piece of land and is located in the middle of both Elgin and Edward Avenue streets.
It has a working space for more than 2,000 vendors, which is twice the number that was previously working at the old market. The market also has an agro-processing facility, stalls, lock-ups, shops, cold rooms, restaurants, a parking yard and loading and offloading areas.
