BULAWAYO vendor, Mr Peter Bhunu does not know how he will
continue feeding his family as the 21-day lockdown takes a toll on his
business.
Mr Bhunu who has a stall along Fifth Avenue said while the
market place has been reopened, that does not benefit them as vending stalls
remain shut.
He said the lockdown was welcome as it is aimed at saving
lives, but it was coming at a personal cost to him.
After the lockdown came into effect last week on Monday,
the vendor was back in town yesterday to clear his stall as the city council
wanted to disinfect the area.
“I just came to clear my stand as we were told that the
chemical used to disinfect this area is poisonous. But my biggest concern is
that we have lost our livelihood at the moment. We have nowhere to turn to and
staying at home without food is a challenge,” said Mr Bhunu.
He said even the few items that they had bought prior to
the lockdown were running out and he does not know how he will continue feeding
his family.
Last week, Government said it had set up a $600 million
fund to cushion those running small businesses from the impact of the 21-day
national lockdown.
Vendors claim information has not cascaded to the intended
beneficiaries.
Mr Bhunu said he had not heard about the fund and fears
losing out on the rescue package.
Another vendor, Ms Siphathisiwe Nkomo shared Mr Bhunu’s
sentiments, saying it is increasingly becoming difficult for them to cope under
the 21-day lockdown.
Bulawayo Vendors and Traders Association executive director
Michael Ndiweni said his members were struggling for survival as most are
living from hand to mouth.
Mr Ndiweni said it was important for Government to expedite
releasing the bailout.
“This is not a sector where people can make savings. They
sell what they have and buy their groceries, their livelihoods have been
seriously affected. We have so far registered approximately 1 800 vendors so
that they benefit from the Government cushion targeting people in such sectors.
But not all the vendors are under our association.
“Some of them do not even have knowledge on how to register
for the fund. We had to assist some of the people, some of them who are not
under our association,” said Mr Ndiweni.
He said the biggest challenge has been to disseminate
information as the fund was announced when the country was already under
lockdown.
Mr Ndiweni said his organisation was working closely with
Bulawayo City Council and the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Community, Small and
Medium Enterprises Development to register the vendors for the grant. Chronicle
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