Maravi

(HERALD) Vending order of day in Chegutu

Vending order of day in Chegutu
Thursday, 21 July 2011 02:00
By Mike Chimombe in Chegutu

IT is almost midnight and the weather is blistering cold but for her it does not matter as she struggles to sell weather-beaten bananas to customers while carrying a little girl on her back. One would wonder if the young woman has got a home to lay her head.

At her tender age it might seem as if her parents are abusing her, as most fortunate girls of her age would be fast asleep, yet she is running around at the peak of the night in search of a dollar. The earnings will help not only herself but her sick mother and little sister as she is now the family breadwinner.

At the same time seeing a 11-year-old boy selling fruits makes one wonder whether the boy attends school. Many of his age are hardly seen loitering around that hour as they usually wake up early to go to school.

This is a different case to Tinashe Rudavo, whose life as a vendor has already begun at such a tender age. Life for the young man has not been the same since his single mother became bed-ridden after succumbing to some strange illness.

His case is made worse as he is also taking care of his three-year old sister whom he usually carries on his back. He cannot leave her with the bed-ridden mother.
"I have to sell these fruits (bananas) everyday because I am now the father and my mother hardly walks while my father passed on six years ago. No one has offered us help. I come here in search of money to feed my mother and sister," explained young Tinashe.

With the Harare-Bulawayo highway being populated by vendors jostling for buyers, the young man says he has to battle it out with his older fellow vendors including women.
The most common merchandise on sell are bananas, oranges, mangoes and potatoes, all from neighbouring farms.

Tinashe said he grew up on a farm where his father worked as a tractor driver while his mother was a mere general worker. When the farm was acquired for resettlement purposes, Tinashe and family moved into the small town where it has proved tough for the family to make a living.

He has since made friends with the few whose life is almost similar to his and this makes it even more difficult to find help since they are in the same predicament.
‘My father died soon after we moved into town from the farm after suffering from an unknown disease. I was five years old then. My mother then remarried and had this little sister of mine but separated after she fell sick to the point where she is today," recalls Tinashe.

Tinashe said he only went to school up to Grade Three as he had no one to pay his fees. His mother who was now into vending in the streets of Chegutu only stopped due to the illness, forcing Tinashe to take over from her.

"After my mother separated she tried to sell different fruits on the highway. She could not continue with the vending business when she fell ill. I had to take over as hunger was ripping us apart," he added.

Driving through Chegutu one is overwhelmed by the presence of these vendors along the highway as they run from one bus, private vehicle, and kombi to the other in anticipation of catching one or two buyers.

Lives have been lost as the vendors are struck by motor vehicles while crossing the highway to sell their merchandise.

Some women claimed they even start their business as early as 10am where they would bring along their children who run around with dishes offering their merchandise to motorists.

Women getting assistance from their children say on good days they could make as much US$20 a day. It was also possible to go home with as little as US$5 a day.
"I order bananas at US$1 for 10 which I then resale at US$1 for seven,'' said Ms Conelias Nyamhunga.

The vendors' ordeal usually gets worse when they face the other side of the law as municipal police officers scare them away from their selling points and other surrounding areas accusing them of having no licences as well as littering the town.

"Sometimes we end up in police custody where we pay fines or have our wares confiscated,'' said another vendor Mrs Otilia Ruwende.

To Tinashe and those of his age, street life is now into them and his three-year-old sister has since found friends of her age brought by other vendors where they play together while the elder brothers and sisters get down to business of the day.

Vending has since become common in this small town to the extent that almost every pavement is now a small market, filled with vendors who lay their stuff on the pavements in an endeavour to beat poverty.

One wonders whether there would be a better life for the young ones who wish to go back to school hoping for a brighter future.

"I hope that one day I would be able to send my sister to a proper school unlike myself. I will never give up on life because I believe that it is dynamic and who knows, maybe tomorrow will be a better day," said yet another young vendor Richard Munemo.

Labels: MARKETEERS

posted by MrK @ 3:51 PM