‘They want to get rid of us by all means’: A critical analysis of policy and governance responses and their implications for street traders’ access to urban space in Harare, Zimbabwe

This paper examines how urban authorities in Harare respond to street trading and the implications of these interventions on street traders’ access to urban space. Drawing from focus groups, in-depth interviews with street traders and urban governance actors, we argue that as urban authorities in Harare become obsessed with defending modernity, they implement aggressive urban policies aimed at eradicating street traders’ livelihoods. These violent measures are often differentially experienced with ‘street vending mothers’, the elderly and those with disabilities bearing the brunt of Harare’s authoritarian spatial governance. Alternatively, the city has also experimented with what we call governing through ‘spatial containment’, aimed at ‘taming’ street traders and transforming them into formalized entities. We demonstrate that despite its noble intentions, such a policy approach has unintended outcomes for street traders since it undermines the organic attributes of their trade: operational flexibility, spatial mobility and proximity to customers. Despite the negative implications of policy interventions, street traders’ associations struggle to champion the collective voice of informal traders due to their organisational fragmentation, unfavourable political environment and existing structural constraints. This study contributes to the broader scholarly debate on urban informality, governance, and socio-economic justice in developing country contexts. Based on our findings, we call for a paradigm shift in policy and governance approaches, advocating for inclusive urban planning, dialogue, and recognition of the socio-economic contributions of street traders.