Street vendors urge government to assist them

The Ministry of Gender and the Promotion of the Family with the authority of Kigali city have recently promised to provide technical and financial  help to people who are conducting small  income generating businesses in the main bus stops in Kigali and elsewhere .

The Ministry and the authority of Kigali city promised these people to equip them with  medical insurance, training  to organize their businesses in their chosen  markets.

These people sell few products at the bus stops, in Nyabogogo square and earn hardly few. Some sell handful products; others sell goods in baskets, boxes, or in buckets.

Because of not paying taxes, they keep facing   governmental challenges. When caught they get imprisoned or pay some fine fees or run away in very endangered situations.

In that running some may fall or leave some of their items behind, which most of the time result in a loss.

The Mayor of Kigali city has recently promised those  people with secured places where they can do their business.

The Minister of Gender and the promotion of the family Odda Gasinzigwa, admits that they know the problems that these people confront.

She says that as the Ministry in collaboration with Kigali city authority, they are going to search new ways through which they can lead these citizens to a better future.

Usually a big number of those who do this business are women. Other kinds of people who are involved in this commerce are children who are breadwinners for their families.

Pregnant women with  their babies in their  backs while carrying goods on the head or in their hands are the ones are their ones who get involved into these activities.

Some of the women involved in the activity told Umuseke that they choose to carry out this activity because they are better tolerated than men when they are arrested.

Some of the those women say that this attracts them into prostitution.

Many of them urge the  government to help them as they face different day to day bad living conditions so to survive in the harsh environment.

Alain Joseph MBARUSHIMANA

UM– USEKE.RW.