Lilongwe City Council says it is pursuing a request it made for the secondment of police officers to the council for effective enforcement of laws on removing street vendors.
The council’s spokesperson Tamara Chafunya said in a written response on Tuesday that this is being done while waiting for the process of establishing municipal police.
She said street vending has become rampant over the years despite continued efforts and strategies being implemented by the council.
Chafunya said: “The main challenges have been on mindset change as many vendors believe business is in the streets or on roadsides where they follow oncoming customers.
“There has also been inadequate capacity to enforce, such as human capital and patrol vehicles as well as interference by other quarters.”
Meanwhile, she said the council is facing numerous challenges in addressing waste management in the city, including vandalism of waste management facilities and illegal disposal of waste in the open by the public and institutions.
Chafunya also pointed out limited waste management equipment against the increasing demand for the same as one of the challenges the council is facing in its efforts to manage waste.
In September 2020, the council, whose officials, supported by armed police officers, razed illegal vendors’ shacks along the city’s downtown streets.
In the same month, President Lazarus Chakwera pledged to meet councillors of all cities to find a win-win solution to the issue of street vending.
Minister of Local Government Blessings Chinsinga told The Nation this week that his ministry plans to make the country’s cities smart, livable and sustainable.
But the minister said improving the status of cities does not only depend on the government alone, stressing that it is a collective responsibility for all relevant stakeholders.
