Midlands Correspondent
Vendors who have been ordered to vacate pavements and other undesignated trading spaces in Gweru’s central business district (CBD) are defying the city council ultimatum, with authorities warning that those who remain will face enforcement action.
The deadline for vendors to leave CBD pavements expired on September 25, but some informal traders have continued operating from the streets, with others playing cat-and-mouse with municipal police to avoid being removed.
Council spokesperson Vimbai Chingwaramusee said authorities had given vendors sufficient notice before beginning enforcement.
“The final cut-off date for all vendors to vacate CBD pavements was September 25, 2026. This was communicated through public notices, vendors’ associations, ward councillors and local media,” she said.
“Enforcement began after reasonable notice. Any vendor still operating on CBD pavements after September 25, 2026, is doing so illegally and is subject to by-law enforcement.”
Chingwaramusee said municipal police had begun removing illegal structures where necessary, adding that the council would follow lawful procedures and directives issued by the local government ministry.
The crackdown is part of a broader council drive to clear pavements and other undesignated trading areas while relocating informal traders to approved vending sites.
However, the continued presence of vendors in the CBD suggests that enforcement remains a challenge for the local authority despite previous engagements and the expiry of the ultimatum.
Vendors’ groups have raised concerns over whether the designated sites have enough capacity to accommodate the more than 3 000 traders registered with council.
Chingwaramusee dismissed the concerns, saying an audit had established that existing vending facilities could accommodate registered traders.
“Council has audited all designated bays, including Ivene and other sites, and established that vending marts in the entire city can accommodate all the registered traders. We are also looking at alternative bays to accommodate unregistered traders,” she said.
The council maintains that the operation is not aimed at depriving vendors of their livelihoods, but at ensuring that informal trading is conducted from designated areas as part of efforts to improve urban order.
Chingwaramusee said the local authority remained committed to an “orderly, lawful and consultative process” that balances urban management with the livelihoods of informal traders.
The availability of basic services at designated vending sites has also emerged as an issue in the relocation exercise.
Chingwaramusee said the recently completed Ivene rank was ready for use, with water and ablution facilities available to traders.
She said council was continuing to audit other designated sites, while engagements with vendors had identified several existing public facilities that could be used.
These include the underground public toilet in the CBD, the TM rank toilet and both paid and free toilets at Kudzanai Bus Terminus.
