Street trading and
hawking is a social problem requiring socially innovative and financially
sustainable solutions. And these can mostly be provided by social enterprises. Bans
on street trading are not sustainable solutions to such an entrenched social
problem. Many attempts have been made by various governments and
administrations to ban street trading and hawking and none have recorded any
sustainable success. No amount of penalties in the form of fines and/or jail
terms will deter street traders and hawkers in Nigeria and Lagos State in
particular.
The recent ban on street trading and hawking by the Lagos State government has been generating a
lot of mixed reactions from the generality of the people. The media, both print
and electronic, are awash with reports from different parts of the state
concerning the feelings of people on the ban. While some are totally against the
ban, some are in support of it.
Street trading and
hawking is an informal form of direct marketing mostly common among petty
traders who buy and sell consumable products along major streets and highways in
big cities and towns across the country. The financial cost of starting up a
street trading and hawking business is relatively small; it does not require
any formal education; there are no strict regulations guiding its formation and
operation; and it can be started in any day, and in anywhere, especially where
there is a large traffic of persons, and vehicular movement is relatively very
slow. Street trading and hawking is a common business activity in Nigeria and
it is spread across major towns and cities of the country.
Recently, states like
Kano, Kaduna and Abuja, the Federal Capital of Nigeria, have enacted laws
prohibiting street trading and hawking in various locations of the states.
Lagos State is not the first to approach this intractable problem with a law.
But how sustainable is the use of these laws and their penalties to solve this
problem? Such laws are quick-fixes and usually unsustainable. They are ineffective
and inefficient in addressing such a pressing social challenge because the root
causes of the problem are usually left unattended to. Addressing the symptoms
of a problem will never solve it.
Why do people indulge
in street trading and hawking? Here are the common factors that encourage and
support street trading and hawking among Nigerians:
1.
General unemployment especially among
the youth.
2.
High cost of living in urban areas.
3.
Poor quality of education.
4.
Poor infrastructural development
especially in rural areas.
5.
Bad and inadequate road networks.
6.
Inadequate economic opportunities.
7.
Poor and inconsistent government
policies.
8.
Others.
And you will agree with
me that unless these conditions are removed, the challenge of street trading
and hawking will persist. But, how can such conditions be removed?
Social enterprise
development offers sustainable alternative solutions to any legislation
prohibiting street trading and hawking in Lagos and Nigeria at large.
JOB
CREATION
Social enterprise
development has been identified as one form of social innovations capable of
generating jobs and employment pathways for those most disadvantaged in the
labour market. Intermediate labour market programs based on social enterprise
models have been proven to be successful at creating decent and sustainable
jobs.
LOW
COST OF LIVING
Apart from the creation
of jobs and employment for those most disadvantaged, social enterprises provide
underserved members of the public access to high quality and affordable basic
needs of food, clothing, housing, water, electricity, healthcare, etc.
QUALITY
AND AFFORDABLE EDUCATION
Social enterprises in
the education sector are using creative, innovative and financially sustainable
means to provide the general public access to quality and affordable
pre-nursery, nursery, primary, secondary and tertiary education. The Open
University program is one innovative way social enterprises have been able to
make education available, accessible and affordable to the general public.
SUSTAINABLE
RURAL COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The reinvigoration and
revitalization of rural economies have been made possible by social enterprises
across the globe. Trading for social purpose and reinvesting surpluses in
communities have made social enterprises strategic in the socio-economic
transformation of communities especially those underserved.
INCREASE
ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES
Social enterprises
create opportunities for people to participate gainfully in their communities.
They open up economic opportunities by introducing innovations, using new
technologies and exploring and exploiting new markets in communities
underserved.
CONSISTENT
GOVERNMENT POLICIES
Social entrepreneurs
collaborate with governments to design and implement policies that will improve
the living standard of the people and sustain the environment. A socially entrepreneurial
government makes policies for the ultimate good of society where it is easier
for everyone to do business and secure decent and sustainable employment.
I would like to
conclude by advising the government of Lagos State to develop its social
enterprise sector which in turn will provide the required social innovations
and initiatives to tackle the problem of street trading and hawking in the
state. An Office of the Governor on Social Enterprise Development should be set
up to lead the development of the Lagos State social enterprise sector. This is
a better and more sustainable solution to the menace of street trading and
hawking in the state, and country as a whole, and not a ban.
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