The City of Johannesburg is embarking on a drive to “clean up” its streets after it adopted a new policy seeking to strengthen the metro's hand in regulating informal traders with strict focus on compliance.
This will see the establishment of new structures in the city to oversee the issuing of informal traders’ permits, monitoring and allocation of trading sites.
These structures will run alongside a newly established permit system that will interface with the department of home affairs, the SA Revenue Service and the department of labour.
The collaboration with home affairs will enable the municipality to vet all foreign nationals applying for informal trading permits and leases to ensure that they have the required documentation.
There have been growing sentiments from groups like the Dudula Movement that South Africans were subletting their state-issued stalls to foreigners. This escalated to violence in Alexandra in which traders who were alleged to be illegal traders were kicked out from malls.
On Tuesday, under the custodianship of economic development political head Nkuli Mbundu, council adopted the final Draft Informal Trading Policy, which speaks to cleaning the streets of the inner city, easing congestion along sidewalks and getting rid of unlicensed traders.
Speaking to Sowetan on Wednesday, Mbundu said this was the city’s attempt to regulate an otherwise unregulated space that had been abused over the years.
“Our trading spaces are overloaded with people. Pikitup can’t meet the cleaning capacity due to the high demand created by the [informal traders] and it’s very important to clean up the inner city and make it attractive,” he said.
He conceded the city did not know how many traders there were, who they were, what they were selling or if it was even safe for consumers.
“We seek to clean that thing up.”
A previous story Sowetan ran said the city had last issued permits in 2013.
“In 2020, we issued more permits than the capacity to manage them. Now we’re able to reduce that number,” he said.
Written by the informal trading deputy director, Herold Mbowana, the draft stated that local government was challenged by competing realities presented by the informal economy.
Mbowana wrote: “On the one hand it offers economic opportunity and it gives expression to the rights of the people to create their own livelihood. On the other hand, it can stress local infrastructure and increase contestation, particularly in public space[s].”
To qualify for a trading permit, the applicant must be a SA citizen or in the case of documented foreign nationals, be authorised to start a business as an informal trader in terms of the Immigration Act 13 of 2002.
The Immigration Act regulates what activities foreign nationals can participate in while in the country. This includes trade as well as entering the labour force. It further states this should not be done to the detriment of South Africans.
Trading will be restricted to certain areas pending the availability of space with the city promising to enforce its own bylaws.
Permits will only be valid for a year and three years for leases. Subletting will not be allowed and a penalty for transgressors will include suspension or cancellation of the trading permit.
An Informal Trading Unit under the department of economic development will appoint a Registrar to establish and maintain an informal traders register.
This means, at all times, the city will know how many traders there are, who they are, where they are, what they are selling and whether or not they are locals or foreigners.
In April 2014 the Constitutional Court set aside a judgment by the high court in Johannesburg that allowed the city to remove traders from their posts during an operation known as “Operation Clean Sweep”.
The ConCourt handed down the judgment that interdicted the city and metro police from interfering with the operations of the traders.
The matter was brought to the ConCourt by the SA Informal Traders Forum on behalf of the 1,208 traders against the city, JMPD and the executive mayor at the time, Parks Tau.
The draft document now states that no trader should be victimised, harrased, vandalised or their goods “arbitrary” confiscated without due process.
“A key function of the [Informal Trading Stakeholders Committee] is to investigate and assist with reporting of wrongdoing against traders,” the report states.
Furthermore, decisive action will be taken against municipal employees who are found to be perpetrators of corruption, violence, xenophobia and abuse of power in relation to informal sector operators.
SA Informal Traders Association Gauteng acting chairperson David Mathekga said the civic movement believes the policy will steer the city in the right direction of knowing the number of traders who operate their businesses.
“The policy is key. It will ensure that a database is created so that the municipality can keep a record of the inflow and outflow of street vendors.
“This policy will reduce overcrowding and control the numbers of traders on the streets. With this policy we will be able to trace and track all activity that happens at a stall and who to go to when there is an issue regarding that stall,” Mathekga said.
He added the city should charge qualifying foreign nationals higher for stall rentals than locals.
“South Africans are citizens and beneficiaries of this country. We are the voters. Nothing about us, without us. Foreign nationals should be charged more because they come from other countries,” Mathekga said.
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