Ghana’s never-ending cycle of street vending?

Photo Credit: https://theconversation.com/248020

Recently, the Accra Metropolitan Assembly embarked on a major decongestion exercise to restore order and improve sanitation in the city. And what did they do? They removed street vendors. As expected, street vending is back as a major topic for discussion on the airwaves.

Street vending remains a visible, persistent feature of many urban centres in low- to – middle-income countries (LMICs), a.k.a Global South. Often celebrated as a demonstration of resilience and agency of the marginalised in urban areas, regulatory ambiguities, and socio-political tensions that embed this economic practice. In Ghana, street vending is fraught with a complicated and multifaceted interaction between economics, spatial planning, regulation, and governance that goes beyond romantic notions.

Street vending in Ghana is a predominantly female-led activity. Many women turn to it as a survival strategy in response to shrinking formal employment opportunities and escalating economic pressures—"feminisation of survival." Rather than venturing into entrepreneurship (which tends to operate informally in Ghana), street vending becomes an obvious choice out of necessity as the barriers of entry are low (i.e., minimal overhead costs, a demonstration of brute confidence to take over space one has no legal claims to and a willingness to engage in hide-and-seek with city authorities – this may appear to trivialise how complex the decision to venture into street vending is). However, framing women's participation as empowering can obscure the structural forces that limit their choices. Indeed, from an economic perspective, street vending can contribute to sustaining low-income households who are navigating economic systems that keep them marginalised. But at what cost to the broader society? What spatial planning principles, health and safety concerns, social security considerations, regulatory arrangements, and governance concerns are we willing to bear?

Tensions with urban planning

Urban planning frameworks in Ghana often reflect colonial-era spatial norms, emphasising formal regulation and Western ideals of order. These standards, however, clash with the informal and dynamic features that characterise how we organise economic activities in spaces. One of the structural issues lies in the ambiguous governance of urban land use. Without robust state-led housing development, private landowners often repurpose land without adherence to zoning or regulatory standards (i.e., this is my house and land, so I have the right to sell in front of my house).

This line of thinking is also seen in marketplaces (e.g., "I do not have a stall in the market, and so I will sit on the fringes to ply my trade because I have a family to sustain."). Trader after trader, pedestrians now jostle for space with street vendors. Pedestrians often meander their way through a maze of trading activities.

It is also important to acknowledge efforts such as market modernisation as one of the ways to expand access to organised trading spaces. However, market modernisation projects have not failed to deter street vending. Reasons such as unaffordable market stalls, limited customer access, and vendors’ preference for high-traffic locations have contributed to the return of street vending after such costly modernisation efforts. The promise of physical infrastructure expansion as a stronger and, perhaps, more humane alternative to city authorities' forcible removal of street vendors has not deterred street vending.

Regulatory enforcement or political expediency?

Enter politics, and the complexity of addressing street vending is taken a notch higher. Interventions addressing street vending tend to be excessively politicised by Ghana’s two major political parties, and the country is the ultimate loser in this excessive polarisation and politicisation.

There is a complex ‘chicken and egg’ situation involving politicians and street vendors. Politicians use reckless rhetoric, especially when in opposition. To the vendors, they say, ‘vote for us and when we return to power (because power oscillates between the governing National Democratic Congress [NDC] and the current opposition, New Patriotic Party [NPP] since the return of multiparty democracy in 1992) we will allow you to ply your trade because you have families to sustain...see how the people you voted for are treating you after you rewarded them with your votes...” Politicians sing to a different tune when in power – street vending is a menace and has to go. They tend to capitalise on major, most often, unfortunate events such as flooding or road accidents to halt street vending, by engaging in major evacuation exercises or using hostile architecture.

Vendors remind politicians of their significant voting bloc's influence in local and national elections. “Is this how you pay us back, as after we brought you to power...evict us, and we will punish you in the next round of elections?” tends to be street vendors’ response to evictions. Wary of losing electoral support, politicians often soften enforcement efforts or reverse regulatory actions after periods of political pressure. This cyclical dynamic hampers consistent urban governance and undermines long-term planning efforts.

The absence of a unified governmental approach towards street vending—combined with fragmented urban governance—creates a “dance” between political expediency and regulatory enforcement. Without political will and policy coherence, sustainable solutions remain elusive.

Environmental, health, and safety concerns

Ghana is committed to ensuring sustainable development. However, street vending also raises serious concerns about the urban environment. Our urban centres are congested with vehicular traffic, as public transport operators (especially trotros) have to compete with street vendors for drop-offs and pick-ups. Even more, pedestrian walkways are obstructed, making our cities ‘unwalkable’. There are also instances where the number of casualties recorded in road accidents has been too high due to the number of people trading along roads.

In cities where space is contested, and infrastructure is under strain, street vending can exacerbate conditions of disorder and risk. Vendors also often operate without basic amenities such as clean water, sanitation, or waste disposal services, which can have broader public health implications.

Moreover, safety risks arise from vendors operating in high-traffic areas—where vehicles and pedestrian paths intersect—endangering vendors and customers and contributing to the perception of street vending as a spatial nuisance rather than a legitimate economic activity.

The way forward – Beyond inclusive urban solutions

Are we inherently disorderly in our spatio-economic interactions? Do we prefer convenient, micro-level solutions over enduring, societal-level solutions that may be more costly financially to the state and politically to parties? Should we just sigh and move on?

A multi-pronged, multi-sectoral, and multi-stakeholder inclusive approach is necessary. However, the primary solutions lie in strict enforcement of regulations, free from the influence of politicians, traditional leaders, and any ‘big man’ (as used in Ghanaian parlance), as well as the unification of political parties on development issues that should remain non-political (i.e., Ghana first). These two solutions are among the most challenging to implement but promise high returns.

Ghana has all the regulations; our problem is implementation. This is a well-known cliché. Street vending should be addressed immediately after a few traders emerge. We need not wait until their trade is established before evictions occur. The normalization of this act makes city authorities complicit in allowing ‘illegality’ to thrive. For well-established street markets, evictions should be free from the influences of powerful individuals who can use their proximity to power to undermine eviction efforts. Once this interference occurs, we lose out on law and regulatory enforcement for individual convenience and comfort.

Similarly, politicians must agree on the non-negotiable aspects of our development that should not be subject to unhealthy politicization and polarization. The excessive polarization of critical challenges only harms Ghana’s progress and undermines the gains made in achieving sustainable development. While political parties converge on the essential elements of our development, our governance systems should strive for a more inclusive and gradually formalized economic system that does not position street vending as the least desirable option for survival.