Street Trading in Oredo Local Government Area in Edo State
Chapter One
Aim and Objectives
This study aims to analyze the activities of street trading in Oredo Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria This is achieved through the following objectives.
- To identify the socio-economic variables influencing street
- To examine the pattern of street trading in the study
- To assess the environmental implications of street
CHAPTER TWO
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW
Introduction
This chapter reviewed some works and related concepts associated with the research topic, with a view to exposing what these researchers have in common, and identifying factors for analysing the Nigerian situation. The literature review and theoretical underpinning is a vital aspect of the research which has to do with reviewing of relevant literatures. However, the efficacy of literature review and theoretical framework in this study cannot be overemphasized. They constitute the central goal of this work, which takes a significant place within the development of human self-knowledge that underscores this investigation. Aiyehuro (2009) defines trading as a system of trading whereby the trader carries his/her wares about. Street and roadside trade is an important economic activity that sustains a significant percentage of rural and urban dwellers, especially within the developing countries.
Researchers have different views on street trading due to different theoretical inclinations and ideologies. This literature review centred on various aspects relevant to the study.
Conceptual Framework
Cities in Nigeria, as in most of the developing nations, are among the most rapidly urbanizing and with most rapid urban growth. While Western societies urbanized at a comparatively leisurely pace, this is in marked contrast with what obtains in many developing nations. For example, according to Henderson (2002), 40% of the United States was urbanized in 1900, 70 % in 1960 and 75+% in 1990. Republic of Korea in contrast was 40% urbanized in 1970 and 78% urban in 1990 (20 years). What took the Unites States 90 years to attain, took Korea 20 years and Brazil 30 years. Consequences of such swift transition are monumental, as urbanization even when it is slow, is an adaptive process almost always involving dislocations in social values and conventional patterns of behaviour in a place, in which this work will base its concept on.
Place Concept
The concept of place is very important in explaining humans and their relationship with their immediate surroundings and environment and how this has in turn influenced behaviour. Indeed, a comprehensive understanding of places is crucial to the whole being of humans (Relph, 1976). The explanation and meaning of place has been contentious over the years. In fact, Place has often been defined subjectively. In cognizance of this, Hubbard (2004) is of the opinion that “what constituted a place was seen to be largely individualistic, although attachments and meanings were often shared (simply put, a place meant different things to different people)”. Similarly, Hubbard (2004) is of the contention that place is another form of space. In this wise, it is very difficult to conceptualize place and as such the varying meanings and definitions that abound (Cresswell, 1996). Agnew (1987) has identified three meanings of the concept of place. He contends that place could be conceived of as a location where it will be referring to an absolute location or a point on the surface of the earth or a sense of place where people play out the feeling of belonging or attachment that people have towards a place. Further a place could be conceptualized as a locale where people interact and carry out their daily activities. For them, Place emerges in some distinct social spaces through naming and other distinct activities
and imaginings akin to that particular social space. On the other hand, Heidegger (1958) opines that “place” places man in such a way that it reveals the external bonds of his existence and at the same time the depths of his freedom and reality”. In contrast to place being an absolute location on the surface of the earth, it can be referred to as a “center of meaning or a focus of human emotional attachment” (Entrikin, 1976). Place can thus be seen to be in interrelationship with humans who are in themselves active agents. Sack (1997) reveals that as much as the self and place are influenced by nature, society and culture, humans are not passive but very active who play a crucial role in the construction of place. Place in turn presents possibilities and limitations to humans in their daily social activities. Hence Entrikin and Tepple (2006) posit that human geographers acknowledge the socially or humanly constructed nature of places. That is, humans as active agents play out in constructing place which itself constraints and facilitates human activities in consonance with notions of duality of structure in structuration theory (Giddens, 1984).
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
Introduction
Methodology is a comprehensive process intended to give full detail of the various steps, methods and techniques that was employed in carrying out the research. It gives full description of how the study was accomplished. The purpose of this study was to analyse the effects of street trading on the environment of Oredo Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria and provides necessary information for future economic planning efforts. This section is also divided into three categories: the first section describes the research design, the second section describes the sampling procedure, and the third section describes the data collection, analysis, and presentation of findings.
Research Design
The study is cross sectional and descriptive in nature, and the zones were divided into eight. Of the eight zones, seven zones consisted of transportation routes. Each of the seven zones consists of a major road, and the last zone is a plaza-Ibom Plaza Connection.
Types of Data
Types of data that were collected include, demographic and socio-economic characteristics of Street traders, (Age, Sex, Marital Status, and level of education), type of goods tradeed, factor that encourages street trading, Patterns of street trading across the different trading zones, effects of street trading on the study area, and methods of waste disposal.
Nature of Data
Three types of survey were conducted namely: Socio-economic and demographic, Physical and Organizational.
Socio-Economic and Demographic Survey:
This was carried out to obtain socio-economic and demographic information of the respondents and data on different dimension of access. This information is very critical for the service providers.
- Physical Survey: This captured the coordinates of each trading zones using GPS map model 76Cx Garmin as shown in Table 1
- Organizational Survey: This was carried out on all the consenting respondents in the study Which involved meeting the traders and collecting data on their services; the buyers were also interviewed to obtain information about the awareness of the environmental effects of street trading.
Sources of Data
This research utilized several methods to collect primary data on street traders. The choice of the data collection tools and technique depended upon the aim and objective of the study. The following were sources of data for the study: structured questionnaire for respondents, oral interviews for environmental authorities and stakeholders, and field observations of street traders. Various publications, articles, and Journals from different sources which are related to this research were also sourced. The spatial data (administrative map) was geo-referenced, then digitized, updated, and the shape files were exported using Arcmap 10.3 software to GIS environment. The entire attribute data were also imputed for GIS database creation. The attribute table was internally linked with Arcmap 10.3 for GIS analysis in analysing the different trading zones in Oredo Local Government Area.
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Introduction
This chapter is devoted to data presentation, analysis and discussion of the results collected from the field interview and survey. Data obtained from various sources have been analysed and presented in tables and maps. It also analyses the effects of street trading on the environment of Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State and provides necessary information for future economic and development planning effort.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Introduction
This chapter summarises all the findings, conclusion of the study and identifying suggestions to mitigate the activities of street traders in Oredo Local Government Area and priority for further research.
Summary of findings and Conclusions
Matters concerning informal street trading are usually generalised with the whole notion of the informal sector which sometimes makes it difficult to pick out exactly the specifics of informal street trading. However, issues involving informal street trading are dynamic and the more one reads and searches for information the more one unravels, ending up with an overwhelming amount of information thus battling with what areas to focus on and what to narrow it down to. It has been seen that informal street trading has moved from being treated with a laissez faire attitude of where it was allowed to grow rapidly in the city without being controlled to a more developmental approach of where it has been acknowledged that there is a need to appropriately plan for it so that it impacts positively on the traders and the city.
The aim of this research was to analyse the activities of street trading on Oredo Local Government Area. To this end seven major roads were choosen and a plaza. These roads were chosen due to the fact that it intersects the CBD and portrayed the best example of a minimalist approach of providing for informal street traders in an organised environment while still maintaining and bringing vibrancy to the area. It was envisaged that the research would: identify a topic of interest that was problematic. In this case, it was street trading in Oredo focusing on issues of socio-economic variables responsible for street trading, examining the pattern of street trading and assessing the environmrntal effects of street trading. The report produced an outline of a theoretical framework which concentrated on the theme of place concept, Marxian and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs as theories that influence planning/human development and help in shaping interventions and policies that deal with informal street trading in the city.
The study identified that majority of the people engaged in street trading activities are young people between the age of eleven and forty years, many of which are educated. It was also found out that the numbers of youths engaged in trading has been on the high increase since the creation of Edo State in 1987. This is understandably so because of the huge number of youth migrants to the state capital but failed to find paid gainful employment. By this, they are left with no option than to engage in the various trading activities.
Another major finding of the research indicated four basic factors of street trading. The first factor is for a means of livelihood, under-employment was seen as a major factor for street trading. Low lwevel of education also constituted the rationale for street trading and for qucik sales especially of those who traded on pershiable goods, like fruits.
Another major finding was on the pattern of street trading in the study area. In normal days, the activity of this group is dangerous to both vehicular traffic and pedestrian who these traders continuously woo with low prices for the purchase of their wares. Every five days when the traders from all over the town come to the market, the traffic and pedestrian situation become more chaotic mostly in Ikpa road and Ibom Plaza.
The absence of sidewalks on most of these roads allows for constant friction between vehicular traffic and pedestrians. This conflict has been increased by the activities of on street trading and hawkers who have made vehicular traffic perilous. Absence of the organized parking lots, shoppers and stallholders park their vehicles along the road, thus reducing the driving space of already overburdened roads.
Above all informal street trading can be controlled and managed with a minimalist approach that brings vibrancy to an area and so should move away from the rigid thinking of need to enclose all traders in constructed markets. Hence this research report contributed to the knowledge base of planning as it highlighted the notion that even though cities may be under pressure to compete globally and maintain order and efficiency in the inner city, the traditional approach of controlling informal street trading by enclosing traders in enclosed markets should not be the only given option as this may end up creating lifeless unnatural urban spaces. This work embraces the ideology of planning with creativity that encompasses the complexity and chaos in cities therefore making informal street trading in the inner city better by taking public space and putting it to good use rather than it being seen as something that needs to be reclaimed with the users of this space being kept out of sight and out of mind. The above cannot be effective if the street traders are not organised. Organisation of street
traders is a pre-requisite for any success. Organised entities can contribute to effective provision and management of vending sites as is happening in most developed nations. The street traders are many and operate in different sites, Oredo urban authorities cannot afford to employ enough officers to manage the activity. Instead, self-management supported by urban authorities should be encouraged.
Recommendations
After undertaking the research, the following recommendations are made as some of the things to be considered objectively when dealing with informal street trading in an environment. Thus;
- Since under-employment appears to be the primary cause of street hawking, the government at all levels should step-up efforts to improve the economy, as a matter of This they can do by stemming the tide of unemployment, improving the remuneration of workers, improving infrastructure, creating job opportunities, and empowering the masses in various conceivable ways. This would go a long way to raise the socio-economic condition of most families thus reducing the poverty rate in the country.
- Markets need to operate in a decentralised manner rather than a centralised ie. People who are on foot should easily have access with markets or trading places not being too far for consumers to buy goods otherwise they will not necessarily go out of their way since it is usually people on foot that informal street traders target and provide services to. Therefore informal street traders should not be taken away from these dynamics that pull them to trade from certain areas. This will help in harnessing the pattern of street trading in the second objective.
- Only a one-sided vehicular parking needs to be allowed along all market roads while removal of wares from shoulder and Kerbs of the road to allow free vehicular and pedestrian movement will also help a lots. Traders can be encouraged to venture into another area of investment such as Traders can be encouraged at the same time to attend vocational training where they can acquire skills for their sustenance especially when they get to the old age. This is because of the risk been involved in street trading activities. More emphasis needs to be placed on the core areas of the city by the government for proper planning, execution, monitoring and enforcement of physical It was, however, noted that there is usually a pessimistic view about what the City wants to do with regards to informal street trading. But, after really engaging in the topic at hand and learning more about the case study, the mindset shifts so that it can be possible to a certain extent for street trading to be organised and well-managed without compromising the well being of traders. Just like any other human being, these traders are making ends meet and should be given the chance and support they need. After all, providing for them in an improved manner is better than completely banning them from selling at all. Thus the City should continue working with all relevant stakeholders and traders to continue in coming up with improved initiatives towards informal street trading with both the City and traders engaging and learning from each other.
Recommendations for Further Research
There are a number of reasons why an inclusive approach to street trading is desirable. Pragmatically, demographic and economic trends indicate that these activities are on the increase, thus street trading is a reality that is unlikely to go away. From a developmental perspective, street traders are often responsible for large numbers of dependants. There are also a disproportionate number of women working as street traders. Research demonstrates that women are more likely than men to spend their income on the household needs (Leton and Omotosha, 2004). From a planning perspective, street traders provide urban residents and particularly the urban poor with goods and services in appropriate quantities and forms and at times of day and in parts of the city that contribute to the functioning of cities.
Economically, although the individual incomes are often low, cumulatively these activities’ contribution to local economies and to local revenue collection is considerable. Inclusive planning, however, does not imply unbridled street trading. Local authorities need to balance the interests of many different stakeholders using public space. Traders themselves report not wanting to work in badly managed environments. Further, as previously noted, given limited consumer demand, there is a direct trade-off between the number of traders and individual incomes earned. Here, innovative approaches to policy, planning, urban design and management that maximize the gains from these activities are being argued for.
Throughout this review, research gaps have been identified. Priority policy and advocacy research gaps are identified and/or reinforced. First, as already noted in the section on street trader’s statistics, until the numbers of street traders and their contribution to the economy is regularly quantified at a national and local level, it is unlikely that negative perceptions of street traders will change. This data is also critical to informing planning responses.
Second, the issue of the economic dynamics of street trading is under-explored. It has been argued elsewhere that given the heterogeneity of the informal economy, policy analysis and documentation should be sectorial (Deth, 1993). The same argument holds true for street traders. Although there are problems like harassment by the city officials that all traders face, there are also product/trade specific issues that warrant attention. Traditional medicine traders, for example, face dwindling supplies due to indigenous forests being over-exploited while supply of second-hand clothes is dependent on national tariff regimes. A developmental approach entails exploring these sector specific constraints.
Third, the implications of the increased penetration of formal retailers, for informal livelihoods, needs to be explored. No studies were found on the impact of formal shopping centre developments on informal retail in the surrounding areas. Greater understanding of the overall welfare implications of these developments on low income consumers is critical. Where informal traders have been incorporated into these developments, these cases need to be documented. A dimension of this development is that South African and foreign retailers are increasingly establishing themselves throughout Africa. Again, little is known about what this means for informal traders.
Fourth, although import trends between China and Africa are monitored, little is known about the specifics of where informal traders fit into the distribution chain of Chinese goods in the study area. Again, the overall welfare implications of this trade on street traders and low income consumers remain unclear. This information is important for informing trade and tariff negotiations.
Fifth, the issue of legal reform has been neglected in this review. Policies often suggest support interventions like micro-finance and training; however, if traders do not have security of tenure, these interventions can be irrelevant or even destructive. Legal reform and litigation strategies on how best to secure the right to operate and improve working conditions need to be further explored.
Sixth, research gaps have been identified regarding urban planning and street trader organization. Keith Hart (2004) reinforces some of the gaps raised: We need to know how formal bureaucracy works in practice and, even more important, what social forms have emerged to organise the informal economy. I would now reverse the original impulse to translate my own ethnographic experience into a language for development economists. We must examine the institutional particulars sustaining the practices that now exist outside of the law.
Finally, Bromley (2000) reminds us of the following: Pressures on the authorities come from numerous different vendor groups, from a wide range of special interests, and from all sides of the political spectrum. Official responses are diverse, spasmodic, and often contradictory, and their effectiveness is severely constrained by the highly visible and constantly fluctuating nature of the population involved, and by the operational limitations of a street-level bureaucracy.
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