City and informal traders working together in Somerset West
31 May 2016
More than 80 informal traders from Strand, Macassar and Somerset West gathered to table issues that hamper their day-to-day operations. The open and honest two-way discussions were very interactive and centred around infrastructure, law enforcement and hygiene.
Community engagement
The event formed part of a series of round-table discussions with informal traders that the City is hosting and provided an ideal opportunity to address the traders’ frequently asked questions, while allowing the traders to raise specific concerns. The Economic Development Department uses the round-table sessions as an information sharing session to gather relevant information that can help to make trading conditions more comfortable. This information then feeds into developing area-specific operational plans.
In addition to local trader representatives, an Environmental Health officer, Solid Waste Management Department officer and Law Enforcement officers from the City attended.
City collaborating to improve trading conditions
‘We committed to building a city of opportunity and it’s important that we listen to the challenges being faced on the ground by our informal trading sector. This sector plays a key role in alleviating poverty. We can only help traders to ply their trade successfully if we work together to find solutions to their challenges,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Economic Development, Councillor Garreth Bloor.
The informal sector is a source of employment for more than 170 000 individuals in Cape Town.
Since October 2015, a total of 18 round-table sessions have been held, with two more scheduled to take place by the end of June this year.
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