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Negotiation and Management Strategies of Street Vendors in Developing Countries: A Narrative Review

Negotiation and Management Strategies of Street Vendors in Developing Countries: A Narrative Review The existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors remain fragmented and limited to specific countries and contexts. This article presents a narrative review of the existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors, and through that creates a unified picture of an otherwise fragmented literature and knowledge base. The concepts of negotiation, power, social network, and perception are used to analyze the various strategies street vendors have used in gaining access to urban public spaces in different parts of the developing world. It is revealed that even though city regulators have access to formal power, street vendors possess a variety of negotiating strategies that gives them access to both formal and informal power. Keywords street vendors, urban regulators, negotiation, social network, power negotiations for public space and their outcome have impor- Introduction tant implications for the well-being of street vendors, because Street vending serves as a major source of employment and having a good space for vending is one of a variety of signifi- income for urban residents the world over, especially in cant factors that affect the well-being of street vendors (Cohen, developing countries (Chen, 2004; Donovan, 2008). Bhatt, & Horn, 2000). Operating from the streets, street vendors may work from Even though different authors have documented the nego- permanent locations, or may be mobile, carrying their wares tiation strategies of vendors in specific countries, this review to customers at places of high pedestrian concentrations presents a synthesized, holistic, and coherent insight by (Bhowmik, 2005). By their presence and activities, however, bringing together the various strategies that vendors have street vendors in different parts of the developing world have used in urban areas of developing countries and analyzing been in confrontation with city authorities or regulators over them through the lens of relevant theoretical concepts of space for business, conditions of work, sanitation, and licens- power, social networks, and social perception. ing (Anjaria, 2006; Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Milgram, 2011; Popke & Ballard, 2004; Skinner, 2008a). These two Literature Search and Analysis groups (street vendors and regulators) have interests that often contradict or compete (Austin, 1994). This section provides a description of the criteria used in As a result of the competing interests between street ven- selecting relevant articles included in this review. It further dors and regulators, street vending has come to depend largely discusses the processes used for searching for articles, on a constant negotiation among vendors, buyers, and regula- including keywords and databases used for searching. The tors (Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Recio & Gomez, 2013). section also describes the types of documents included in the Negotiations may be for public space, for economic opportu- review and explains how the analysis was undertaken. nity, and for power, and may involve the general public, shop owners, and urban regulators (Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008). Among street vendors, regulators, pedestrians, and the 1 Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana general public, negotiations may occur regarding what can be Corresponding Author: considered an acceptable and unacceptable use of space, as John B. Forkuor, Department of Sociology & Social Work, Faculty of well as what can be considered rights of the vendor to operate Social Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and earn a living from public spaces against the rights of the Kumasi, Ghana. state to maintain public spaces (Drummond, 2000). These Email: jbforkuor@knust.edu.gh Creative Commons CC-BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). 2 SAGE Open reports, working papers, and conference proceedings down- Criteria for Inclusion and Exclusion of loaded from the database of relevant international organiza- Relevant Documents tions such as Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing First, articles on the World Wide Web, without a clearly spec- and Organizing (WIEGO) and the International Labor ified author or organization responsible, were excluded Organization (ILO). The third and final category of docu- because information from such documents could not be veri- ments included newspaper articles and media reports from fied and relied on. different parts of the world. The first two categories may be Second, it was required that articles must primarily be a considered as scientific sources of information, while the last journal or newspaper article, a research report, or a confer- may be classified simply as media. ence proceeding reporting on primary data or primary research. Journal articles were included because journal arti- Searching for Documents: Search cles often use primary research data and were, as a result, a Engines, Keywords, Journals, and good source of primary research on the tension between ven- Databases dors and regulators in different parts of the developing world. The other sources indicated, commonly known as gray litera- As emphasized by Green, Johnson, and Adams (2006), it is ture, were included because Jones (2004) argues that as a important for authors of narrative review articles to clearly result of publication bias, a lot of information do not get pub- indicate the databases and keywords used in searching for lished in journals. Consequently, including gray literature in articles. For this review, the document repositories of inter- this review helped to eliminate the potential for such publica- national organizations like WIEGO and ILO were searched tion bias. to identify articles, working papers, conference proceedings, Third, it was required that the document should focus on and technical reports. In addition, the first author subscribed a developing country context, and must have as, either its to WIEGO’s online news roundup, receiving as a result, a primary focus or part of its focus, a discussion of the rela- compilation of global news coverage, reflecting print and tionship between regulators and street vendors. The empha- electronic media coverage on the informal economy, includ- sis on a developing country context was to ensure a good ing street vending. This proved to be an important source of synthesis of information on developing countries. Developing information on the discourse about street vendors in different countries are urbanizing at a faster rate and street vending is parts of the world. one of the most common phenomena associated with urban- Research articles included in the review were also identi- ization in developing countries. Thus, the similarity of con- fied from journals such as Environment and Urbanization, text (in terms of the vending activity, the use of public space Geoforum, Urban Studies, Journal of Development Studies, and public space regulation) allows for literature from these Journal of Modern African Studies, Qualitative Sociology, contexts to be analyzed in generating a more synthesized and Economic and Political Weekly. Some keywords and knowledge base for street vending, to be used by stakehold- phrases that were used for the article search were as follows: ers involved in street vending. street vending; trading on the streets; street traders; regulat- This review focused on literature between the year 2000 ing street vending; street vendors and urban regulators; pri- and 2016. This is because literature from the 21st century vate and public space; and ownership of public space. provides the best option of gaining a better insight into the relationship between city authorities and vendors. An insight Analysis of Documents that is more in tune with the present state of the relationship between city authorities and vendors in developing coun- Each article was read twice. The first reading was to famil- tries. Thus, focusing on literature from the 21st century pro- iarize researchers with the content of the article or publica- vides an opportunity for using relevant, up to date information tion. A second more detailed reading was conducted to on the negotiated relationship between vendors and city identify and tag the strategies that vendors use to negotiate authorities. Finally, this study’s focus is not to present a his- for space. Once identified, the individual strategies were torical review of how this relationship has changed over time summarized by a descriptive word or phrase, with the word per se but rather to provide a narrative review of the nature or phrase serving as codes for further analysis. For instance, and dynamics of this relationship as it exists presently. Hence phrases like “court action,” “bargaining with votes,” “pay- the emphasis on literature from the 21st century. ment of tokens,” and “carrying few goods” were some of the codes used to summarize the strategies used by vendors to negotiate for space. Subsequently, the codes were examined, Types of Documents Included in and similar codes put together to form a theme. Thus, within Review one theme could be found strategies from different studies. On the whole, three main categories of documents were used For instance, “court action” and “bargaining” with votes as part of this review. The first category was scientific peer were put together under the theme “macrolevel negotiating reviewed journal articles. The second category included strategies,” while “carrying few goods” and “payment of Forkuor et al. 3 tokens” came under the theme “microlevel negotiating strat- street vendors are often portrayed as offensive and illegiti- egies.” The main findings were subsequently organized and mate invaders, who inhibit the ability of cities to modernize explored around the main identified themes. and achieve a global status (Crossa, 2009; Rajagopal, 2001; Stillerman, 2006; Turner & Schoenberger, 2012). Street ven- dors are perceived as a sign of chaos and disorder; and a Summary of Data Set failure of metropolitan authorities to instill order within the In sum, this review identified 31 relevant articles and reports cities (Crossa, 2009; Rajagopal, 2001; Stillerman, 2006; from three different regions of the world: Africa, Asia, and Turner & Schoenberger, 2012). Rajagopal (2001) further South America. Eighteen of these were journal articles, six explains that in Mumbai India, “street vendors are seen as were newspaper and media reports, and seven were policy offensive, inconvenient, and illegitimate . . . a symbol of briefs, working papers or research reports. Refer to Table 1 metropolitan space gone out of control” (p. 94). The media for brief descriptions of articles and reports used for this plays a crucial role in shaping the negative perceptions of the review. public regarding street vendors (Rajagopal, 2001). Publications and news items sometimes portray a negative image of street vendors. A search of the print media in Ghana Results on articles about street vendors reveals how the phenomenon In presenting the findings, a review of how street vendors of street vending is discussed in the public arena, and the have been portrayed and perceived, and the implications of image of street vendors that emerges out of this discourse. these perceptions for the livelihoods of street vendors are Journalists use terms such as swarm, take over, invade, first presented. This is followed by a review of the key strate- flooded to describe vendors’ occupation of public spaces, gies street vendors have used in negotiating for space in suggesting the undesirability of their occupation of public urban areas. The various ways in which power, both formal spaces: those “daredevil hawkers” as one journalist simply and informal, manifests itself in this negotiated setting will puts it in the Ghanaian Times newspaper (Anyimah-Ackah, be explored. 2007; Asare, 2006; Baffloe, 2006; Benghan, 2011). Reporting on street vendors in Belo Horizonte in Brazil, Carrieri and Murta (2011) also cite instances where newspapers argue in Perceptions About Street Vendors favor of city authorities and present a negative image of Different stakeholders in different parts of the developing street vendors to readers and the public. The authors indicate world have perceived street vendors in different ways. how words such as riots, fear, criminality, violence, and Predominantly, however, these perceptions have been posi- organized crime have been used to represent vendors. As a tive or negative, focusing mostly on vendors’ occupation of result of these negative perceptions, street vending in general public space and the effects such occupation has on urban has become a phenomenon associated with poor level of city residents and urban life (Donovan, 2008). This section dis- or urban development and modernization (Anjaria, 2006). cusses how street vendors have been perceived mostly not Thus, “by working on the streets, they are engaged in an only by urban authorities but also by urban residents and activity that contradicts the supposed universal ideals of the other urban actors in relation to their use of urban space. It is modern public space” (Anjaria, 2006, p. 2142). Alternatively, revealed that even though negative perception of vendors street vendors are perceived as elements who do not belong exists, this perception is not limited to the activity of vending as part of the urban and modern landscape, they are consid- itself but mostly on the location of vending. In line with this, ered as “out of place” urban elements (Yatmo, 2009). this section reveals how perception can be fluid, changing In addition to its negative effects on the image of cities, from favorable to nonfavorable during different times of the street vendors have often been perceived as creating a safe day and different seasons. haven, through their congestion of streets, for crime to flour- ish. They are considered as untrustworthy people who, in collaboration with thieves and drug dealers deceive unsus- Negative Perception of Vending pecting members of the public and pedestrians (Austin, First, city authorities and regulators have often perceived and 1994). Thus, for some shop owners in Bogota Colombia, portrayed street vending as negatively affecting the attrac- street traders bring only disorder, filth, and the risk of crime tiveness and beauty of their cities. In African cities like and theft (Donovan, 2008). By their congestion of city Kumasi in Ghana, for instance, street vendors are perceived streets, they are perceived as making it possible for thieves to by city authorities as sources of congestion and poor envi- hide and move among them unnoticed, a situation that ronmental sanitation, and their structures are seen as destroy- adversely affects the activities of more established and for- ing “the aesthetic quality of the urban settlements” mal shop owners (Donovan, 2008). Finally, street vendors (Solomon-Ayeh, Sylvana, & Decardi-Nelson, 2011, p. 21). are also perceived as creating unfair competition for more Similarly, in Southern American and Asian cities like Mexico established shop owners, subsequently reducing the profits city in Mexico, Santiago in Chile, and Mumbai in India, of shop owners by offering pirated and counterfeit goods and 4 SAGE Open Table 1. Matrix of Articles Included in Review. Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Stillerman 2006, Santiago, Chile The Politics of Space and The paper relies on primary data and the Qualitative Sociology, JOURNAL ARTICLE Culture in Santiago, theoretical concepts of space to analyze 29, pp. 507-530 Chile’s Street Markets the strategies used by street vendors in order to get access to, maintain and use public space. Solomon-Ayeh, 2011, Kumasi, Ghana Street Vending and the use This paper used both quantitative and The Ghana Surveyor, Sylvana, and JOURNAL ARTICLE of Urban Public Space in qualitative research tools to explore how 4(1), pp. 20-31 Decardi- Kumasi, Ghana street vendors make use of urban public Nelson space and how urban authorities respond to their use of public space as a result. Anjaria 2006, Mumbai, India Street Hawkers and Public This paper relies on primary research Economic and Political JOURNAL ARTICLE Space in Mumbai findings to reveal the lived in experiences Weekly, 41(21), of street hawkers. It discusses how the pp.2140-2146 hawkers understand, interpret and relate with their occupation of public space and their interaction with state officials on a day to day basis. Anyimah-Ackah 2007, Accra, Ghana Hawkers and Traders and This newspaper article reports on the The Ghanaian Times NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Their Game of Tricks and dynamic relations between street hawkers Newspaper, Defiance: Can the AMA and city authorities and describes some of February 7, 2007, Match Them? the strategies that hawkers have used to p. 8 evade and have access to the use of public space for Hawking in Accra Asare 2006, Kumasi, Ghana Hawkers Takeover the This paper reports on the occupation of Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Streets of Kumasi as hawkers of public space and how the Newspaper. Christmas Approaches authorities are dealing with them. December 20, p. 29 Asiedu and 2008, Accra, Ghana Traders on the Run: This research relies on qualitative semi- Norwegian Journal Agyei-Mensah JOURNAL ARTICLE Activities of Street structured interviews to explore of Geography, 62, Vendors in the Accra the operation of street vendors, the 191-202 Metropolitan Area, Ghana challenges they face, and how they cope with these challenges, and their relationship with urban authorities. Baffloe 2006, Accra, Ghana Street Hawkers Invade This paper relies on interviews with state Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE National Theatre officials and street hawkers to discuss Newspaper. March hawkers’ occupation of a public facility 1, 2006 in Accra and how state officials have responded to this. Benghan 2011, Accra, Ghana Extortion! AMA Taskforce This paper reports how city officials use The Ghanaian Times NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Personnel take Hawkers’ their privileged positions to take monies Newspaper, June 6, Cash: 70 Dismissed from street hawkers with a promise of 2011, p. 2 access to public spaces for vending Bentil 2008, Accra, Ghana Hawkers Thwart Efforts to This article reports on the activities and Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Beautify City operations of street hawkers and how Newspaper, these activities affect the appearance of October 13, 2008, the city of Accra p. 25 Donovan 2008, Bogota, Informal Cities and the This paper relies on questionnaire surveys Urban Studies, 45(1), Colombia Contestation of Public to analyze the tension and struggles pp. 29-51 JOURNAL ARTICLE Space: The Case of between state officials and street vendors. Bogota’s Street Vendors, 1988-2003 Drummond 2000, Vietnam Street Scenes: Practices of This paper used primary data to Urban Studies, 37(12), JOURNAL ARTICLE Public and Private Space in demonstrate the fluid nature of the pp. 2377-2391 Urban Vietnam boundary between public and private space and shows how this boundary changes or is violated in various ways. (continued) Forkuor et al. 5 Table 1. (continued) Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Kayuni and 2009, Malawi Political Transitions and This research uses qualitative research Theoretical and Tambulasi JOURNAL ARTICLE Vulnerabilities of Street tools to analyze how changes in political Empirical Vending in Malawi systems have affected street vending in Researches in Urban Malawi, focusing also on relocation and Management, 3(12) its impact on the livelihood of street vendors Milgram 2011, Baguio City, The Reconfiguring Space, This paper discusses how street vendors Journal of Development Philippines Mobilizing Livelihood: use various strategies to protest and to Studies, 27, pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vending, Legality, negotiate with city authorities for vending 261-293 and Work in the spaces in the central business district. Philippines Mitullah 2003, Kenya; Cote Street Vending in African This is a report that integrates research Background Paper D’Ivoire; Ghana, Cities: A Synthesis of findings from different African countries for the 2005 World Zimbabwe, Uganda, Empirical Findings from about the state of street vending in Africa. Development and South Africa Kenya; Cote D’Ivoire; Report RESEARCH REPORT Ghana, Zimbabwe, Uganda, and South Africa. Mitullah 2006, Kenya, Cote Street Vendors and Informal This article discusses the challenges of Pambazuka, June 1, D’ivoire, Ghana, Trading: Struggling for the street trading and how poor urban Issue 25 Uganda, Zimbabwe Rights to Trade. planning fails to incorporate street and South Africa vendors within urban spaces. REVIEW PAPER Rajagopal 2001, Mumbai, India The Violence of This paper discusses the operation of Social Text, 19(3), pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE Commodity Aesthetics: mobile food vendors in Mumbai India, 91-113 Hawkers, Demolitions analyzing local perceptions of these Raids, and a New Regime vendors and how they contest for space. of Consumption Recio and 2013, Caloocan, Metro Street Vendors, the This study analyzed the challenges facing Environment and Gomez Manila Contested Spaces, and street vendors within the context of Urbanization Asia, 4 JOURNAL ARTICLE the Policy Environment: existing laws and how street vendors (1), pp. 173-190 A View from Caloocan, negotiate with stakeholders for the right Metro Manila to use public space. Schindler 2013, Delhi, India Producing and Contesting This study discusses the fluid nature of the Urban Studies, 0(0), JOURNAL ARTICLE the Formal/Informal boundary between formal and informal pp. 1-17 Divide: Regulating Street work, showing how power may be Hawking in Delhi, India. manifested in both vendors and regulators under different circumstances. Skinner 2008a, Cambridge Street Trade in Africa: A This paper reviews existing literature from WIEGO Working REVIEW PAPER Review. different African countries, focusing on Paper No. 5 how different authorities have responded to and handled the issue of street vending. Skinner 2008b, Durban, South The Struggle for the Streets: The paper draws on secondary data Development Southern Africa Processes of Exclusion collected over a number of years on Africa, 25(2), pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE and Inclusion of Street the activities of street traders in urban 227-242 Traders in Durban, South Durban. It focuses on how different Africa political authorities have responded to street vending since 1920s Bass 2000, Dakar, Senegal. Enlarging the Street and This research uses qualitative methods International Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Negotiating the Curb: to explore the experiences of street Sociology and Social Public Space at the Edge of vendors, revealing how demographic Policy, 20 (1/2), pp. an African Market characteristics of age, gender, and class 76-97 influences the negotiating power available to various vendors. (continued) 6 SAGE Open Table 1. (continued) Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Boateng 2012, Accra, Ghana. A Report on Street Vending This study reports the findings of a research Labor Research and RESEARCH REPORT in Ghana that relied on interviews, focus group Policy Institute of discussions, and a review of policy Ghana. documents to explore the working conditions of vendors including taxation, relations with city authorities, and security and occupational safety. Kusakabe 2006, Thailand, Policy Issues on Street Summarizes findings from three primary International Labor Cambodia, and Vending: An Overview research studies on street vending, Organization, Mongolia. of Studies in Thailand, focusing especially on the legal status of Bangkok Office RESEARCH REPORT Cambodia, and Mongolia vendors, their access to space, and to social security. Horn 2014 Collective Bargaining in the This research used interviews and WIEGO and the RESEARCH REPORT Informal Economy: Street participatory action research approaches Solidarity Center Vendors to explore how street vendors in different (Global Labor countries engage in different forms of Program) collective negotiation around policies and regulations. Kumar 2012, India The Regularization of Street This brief gives a firsthand account of WIEGO Policy Brief POLICY BRIEF Vending in Bhubaneshwar, how stakeholders including regulators (Urban Policies) India: A Policy Model and street vendors worked together to No.7 develop a mutually beneficial strategy for managing street vending in Bhubaneshwar, India Steel 2012, Cusco, Peru Whose Paradise? Itinerant This paper is based on both qualitative International Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vendors’ Individual and quantitative data on the resistance Urban and Regional and Collective Practices strategies employed by street vendors in Research, 37(5), pp. of Political Agency in the dealing with municipal agents. 1007-1021 Tourist Streets of Cusco, Peru Crossa 2009, Mexico City, Resisting the This paper uses information from International Journal of Mexico. Entrepreneurial City: interviews, observations and archival data Urban and Regional JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vendors’ Struggle to explore how street vendors negotiated Research, 33(1), pp. in Mexico City’s Historic the changes brought about by a newly 43-63 Centre implemented city wide program. Carrieri and 2011, Belo Horizonte, Cleaning Up the City: A This research used discourse analysis, Canadian Journal Murta Brazil Study on the Removal interviews, and desk research to of Administrative JOURNAL ARTICLE of Street Vendors From investigate the relocation of street Sciences, 28, 217- Down Town Belo vendors to an indoor shopping location. 225 Horizonte, Brazil Turner and 2012, Hanoi, Vietnam Street Vendor Livelihoods This paper relies on the concepts of Urban Studies, 49(5), Schoenberger JOURNAL ARTICLE and Everyday Politics urban livelihoods, everyday politics, and pp. 1027-1044 in Hanoi, Vietnam: The resistance to analyze the various ways by Seeds of a Diverse which street vendors in Hanoi, Vietnam Economy? have responded to the State’s policies and practices against street vending. Bonner and 2013 Global Networking: This paper relies on knowledge of global WIEGO Working Carre WORKING PAPER Informal Workers Build networks of informal workers, exploring Paper No. 31, Solidarity, Power and how they differ and how these differences September 2013 Representation Through affect their negotiation strategies. Networks and Alliances Yatmo 2009, Jakarta, Indonesia Perception of Street This article explores public perception Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Vendors as “Out of Place” toward street vendors and how this Environmental Urban Elements at Day perception changes during different times Psychology, 29(4), Time and Night Time. of the day. pp. 467-476. Note. WIEGO = Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing. Forkuor et al. 7 commodities for sale at very low prices (Mitullah, 2003). security for more established shop owners and the general pub- Owners of shops in Mumbai, India, and in Bogota, Colombia, lic as a whole, maintaining a watchful eye over events, and have been vocal in this regard. These shop owners have showing up to assist in case of accidents and emergencies on expressed concerns that street traders provide unhealthy the streets (Anjaria, 2006). Where shop owners hold such per- competition and drain the income of more established, regis- ceptions of street vendors, there evolves a special kind of rela- tered and taxpaying shop owners (Donovan, 2008; Rajagopal, tionship built on trust between the vendors and the shop owners 2001). Similarly, Steel (2012) reports of more established (Anjaria, 2006). This perception of street vendors as capable of shop owners in Cusco, Peru, who complain about their loss preventing crime has also been evident in Durban, South of autonomy over the sale of products and the competition Africa, where street vendors have worked hand-in-hand with that vendors bring with them, with its associated declines in the police in preventing crime on the streets (Skinner, 2008). sales and earnings. Here, street vendors have been trained by the police to monitor their streets and to inform the police when they feel something is not right (Skinner, 2008). Through such collaborative efforts, Positive and Fluid Perceptions Skinner (2008b) reports that there has been a significant reduc- These negative perceptions notwithstanding, Yatmo (2009) tion in the incidence of crime in the inner city areas of Durban. explains, based on a research in Jakarta, Indonesia, that the What is evident is that, despite the fact that street vendors are negative perception of street vendors as out of place ele- sometimes accused of promoting crime, there are instances ments in the urban landscape is not absolute but rather, a where street vendors have worked to eliminate the same forms fluid phenomenon, changing with time of day. Yatmo (2009) of crime they are accused of. There are other instances where argues by emphasizing that more established shop owners perceive street vendors not as offering unfair competition but rather as an avenue for business the evaluation of street vendors as out of place elements change development. In Mexico City in Mexico, for instance, Crossa from day-time to night-time . . . suggesting that the generalisation (2009) reports that a special alliance exists between street ven- of judgement that the street vendors are out of place in any dors and shop owners, where street vendors sometimes “sell locations at any time may not be entirely correct. (p. 473) products on the street on behalf of shop owners” (p. 55). However, like the above, the emphasis have been predomi- Yatmo (2009) explains that at night-time, respondents per- nantly on the negative effects that street vending have for for- ceived street vendors as more organized with cleaner envi- mal businesses, with very little attention paid to the benefits ronments, in contrast with their perceptions of vendors and opportunities that street vending present for formal during the days. This fluidity in the perception of vendors businesses. describes the attitude of some city authorities toward the Evidently, wherever city authorities and other members of phenomenon of street vending. There is evidence to suggest the public perceive street vendors positively, the larger urban that in some countries, urban authorities’ perceptions of ven- community benefit through the collaborative efforts and the dors and their attitude to street vending in general change positive effects that result. Interestingly, these positive effects during different economic periods (Donovan, 2008). In seem to receive very little attention from city and urban Bangkok and Thailand, for instance, the financial and eco- authorities in general. On the contrary, the argument has over- nomic recession of 1997 compelled people into the Street whelmingly been on the negative effects street vendors have Food (SF) trade as a source of income and employment on cities and the “illegality” of the street vending activity. It (Chung, Ritoper, & Takemoto, 2010). The central and munic- could be argued, however, that the problem is often not with ipal governments of Thailand and Bangkok, respectively, the activity of vending itself but mostly the location that went to the extent of encouraging citizens to take up SF vending takes place. Thus, the negative perception often vending as an alternate source of income during this finan- relate to the space/site for vending and that vending in itself is cial crisis (Chung et al., 2010). Harper (1996, cited in also perceived positively as an important economic activity Donovan, 2008) also reports that during economic difficul- providing important benefits for urban residents. ties in the 1990s, the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur reduced regu- lations on vendor licenses and set aside more areas for street vending to take place. This fluidity in perceptions empha- City Authorities and Their Response to sizes the fact that vending is only problematic during specific Street Vending periods and in particular locations. Furthermore, the argument has been made, for instance, that In line with the perceptions of a modern and global city, evic- by their mere presence, street vendors serve and act as deterrent tion and relocation campaigns are undertaken by city author- of various forms of crimes on city streets (Anjaria, 2006). In ities to “clean up” the city and make it more “attractive” Mumbai, street vendors have on occasion protected women (Anjaria, 2006; Donovan, 2008; Milgram, 2011). Where against sexual harassment (Anjaria, 2006). Consequently, ven- vendors are perceived as a nuisance, a symbol of chaos and dors and street traders are perceived as providing important disorder, eviction is often intense, involving the use of 8 SAGE Open bulldozers, and justified as necessary to restore “order” and (2001) reports that in negotiating for a space for business, “sanity” back to city life (Rajagopal, 2001). Examples of some street vendors in Mumbai, India have gone as far as such evictions and relocations have been undertaken in India, fight for this right in the law courts, taking on city authorities Vietnam, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, and in other and subsequently gaining the right to vend within specific developing countries in Africa (Anjaria, 2006; Donovan, city spaces (Rajagopal, 2001). This strategy is also common 2008; Drummond, 2000). among street vendors in other Indian cities like Delhi These evictions and relocations can be conceived as a (Schindler, 2013). Rajagopal, 2001) writes, demonstration of the power of cities and urban areas over Hawkers have also learned to use the courts instrumentally. residents and street vendors (Skinner, 2008a). This is Some hawkers were thus appealing for injunctions against because, within a social negotiated setting, those who are in demolitions or eviction in different courts under different names. need of something are usually constrained by the actions of When a hawker lost a case in the city civil court, he or she would those who can satisfy their needs (Fine, 1984). Similarly, move to the high court without revealing the details of the earlier street vendors, working with limited or no infrastructural case. Sometimes, a wife or a brother would move to another facilities and limited access to competitive space for busi- court over the same hawking spot. The hearings and adjournments ness are often constrained by the conditions laid down by translated into valuable business time for the hawker. (p. 107) city authorities and regulators who control vital public space. Thus, city regulators have often used the prevailing negative This strategy of negotiating for space has also been perception about street vendors as a negotiating tool to gain reported among street vendors in Bogota city in Colombia, more power, which enhances their claim over crucial public where vendors have often responded to threats of eviction space. Similar to the above, Mitullah (2006) has reasoned with a legal action arguing that eviction will go contrary to that the eviction of street vendors from busy city centers their right to work and earn a living (Donovan, 2008). What have power implications because the vacation of the streets happens then is that vendors begin to make use of the same by street vendors makes these profitable streets and city cen- institutions that legitimizes the power of regulators, they ters available to large scale and powerful formal businesses have learnt to use the same tools that the state uses against at the expense of small scale vendors. The eviction of ven- them to fight back and to gain power (Rajagopal, 2001). dors by force, the destruction of perceived illegal vending In addition to using the courts as a negotiating tool and stands, and the confiscation and sometimes destruction of source of power, other vendors as a group, have used their goods demonstrate the extent, nature, and effects of the votes as a bargaining power in negotiating with city authori- power held by city regulators (Rajagopal, 2001). ties. This is especially significant where the vendor popula- tion is large, as it is in Mexico city (Donovan, 2008). In this instance, street vendors vote into power their own nominated Negotiating for Space: Street Vendors individuals who in turn allow them to vend on city streets and City Authorities (Donovan, 2008). In other instances, vendors “ . . . secured Street vendors, despite the above information, are not “power- licenses in exchange for political support during city elec- less” in the face of eviction and relocation. As participants tions . . .” (Donovan, 2008, p. 35). Voting for people into city actively reinterpreting and renegotiating their realities, street councils and other positions has also been revealed as a com- vendors have a variety of strategies available to them, a sign of mon strategy by street traders in the northern city of Baguio their own power, in the face of eviction and relocation. This in the Philippines (Milgram, 2011). The votes of street ven- section discusses some of the strategies that street vendors, as dors are important as a negotiating tool, to the extent that it individuals and as organized groups, have used in securing can change policies, albeit temporarily. Thus, Milgram access to important locations for vending in urban areas of (2011) writes regarding vendors in the Philippines that “since developing countries. Using examples from different places, municipal elections were scheduled for May 2010, the then the section demonstrates how the use of these strategies gives current city counsellors hesitated to introduce new bye laws some form of power to street vendors in their relationship with that might arouse the displeasure of their constituents, city authorities. These negotiating strategies can be classified including vendors, and thus threaten their chances of re-elec- under two main categories: negotiations that take place at the tions” (p. 284). In Malawi in Africa, by voting for “council- macrolevel (between organized groups of vendors and state lors” of local assemblies, street vendors were assured of a authorities), and negotiations that take place at the microlevel protective voice within local authorities as these councilors (between individual street vendors and city regulators). acknowledged the support of the vendors in bringing them into office (Kayuni & Tambulasi, 2009). Kayuni and Tambulasi (2009) write the following of the councilors in Negotiating at the Macrolevel Malawi: “most councillors knew that they were brought into For some street traders and vendors, the use of public space office through mostly the support of the vendors themselves. is closely linked with the right to survive and to earn a liveli- In this regard, the vendors had, to some extent, an authorita- hood, a right that must be fought for and protected. Rajagopal tive voice through the councillors” (p. 88). Not only do these Forkuor et al. 9 placed officials lobby city authorities on behalf of street trad- International Transport Worker’s Federation, WIEGO, Latin ers in securing access to public spaces for business, they also American Waste Picker Network (Red Lacre), Global serve as crucial sources of information about the actions and Alliance of Waste Pickers, and Home Net South Asia assist inactions of city authorities regarding impending evictions informal sector workers by building a global network and and raids through the city center (Milgram, 2011). Because involving in transnational advocacy to promote the rights knowing when to run or leave a place of business is a crucial and well-being of informal sector workers including street part of the negotiation for and use of space among street trad- vendors (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, 2014). ers and vendors, well-placed sources in positions of authority Currently, The Street Net International and WIEGO are within urban areas help street traders to effectively negotiate among some of the globally recognized organizations con- for and use space to enhance their livelihoods (Milgram, cerned about the rights of informal workers in general and 2011). Milgram (2011) quotes one respondent as saying, street vendors specifically (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, “We actively sought friends in City Hall who agreed to tell us 2013; Horn, 2014). The Street Net International, a member- when a raid is scheduled if they hear about it in advance” (p. ship-based organization (such as trade unions, cooperatives, 282). In effect, one major strategy that street vendors have or associations), directly organizes street vendors, market used in getting access to and using city spaces is to either use vendors, and/or hawkers to negotiate with city authorities their votes as a bargaining power or to vote for their own into and to improve the work conditions of informal sector street public offices who in turn will lobby for the street vendors. workers (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, 2014). Once again, vendors are demonstrated as using what they They organize bargaining forums with city officials, helping have, their vote, to negotiate and gain power (Crossa, 2009). to promote the exchange of information and ideas on critical One other macro strategy that street vendors have used to issues facing street vendors, market vendors, and hawkers. In negotiate for space in urban areas is through public demon- addition, they help enlighten street workers and other infor- strations. These demonstrations may take the form of public mal sector workers on how to exercise their rights against rallies, where vendors sometimes march on city authorities harassment (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, and hand over demands and grievances, an approach which 2014). In attempt to fight for their rights, informal workers has been used effectively by vendors in Durban, South form association and then liaise with these international Africa, in preventing eviction (Skinner, 2008b) as well as in organizations/NGOs to help them negotiate with government Caloocan in Manila, the Philippines (Recio & Gomez, 2013). officials to effect changes in policies. Sometimes these public demonstrations take violent forms, Through these macro strategies, street vendors in differ- as has been reported in Mexico City in Mexico (Crossa, ent parts of the developing world have sought to stake a 2009). Crossa (2009) cites an example from April 2002 claim for their use of public space and to negotiate against where hundreds of street vendors came together in Mexico eviction and relocation campaigns. It is important to note City, sprayed the police with tear gas, and hit them with though that even though the macro strategies discussed sticks when the police attempted to evict them from operat- above have been demonstrated to be generally effective for ing in the city center. Here, street vendors gain power through all street vendors and to represent their power, there remain numbers and use some of the same strategies that city author- considerable within-group differences in terms of its benefits ities have used against them in resisting eviction and main- for different categories (age, sex, and class) of vendors. taining the use of city spaces. Thus, individual vendors may benefit differently from these Another form of public demonstration, as revealed by strategies depending on their sex, age, and social class. Bass Milgram (2011) and Recio and Gomez (2013) take the form (2000) in a research of the negotiating strategies of street of letter writing campaigns organized by members of street vendors in Senegal draws attention to how the above sociode- vendor associations aimed at city authorities, demonstrating mographic characteristics define the benefits that particular against an impending eviction and proving, through their let- groups of vendors gain. Using evidence from her research, ters, why they should be allowed to operate under certain Bass (2000) makes a strong argument for how gender, age, occasions. Recio and Gomez (2013) report how street ven- and class determines the negotiating power of different dors in Caloocan, Metro Manila, in the Philippines engage groups. Bass (2000) finds, for instance, that because female city regulators and authorities in discussions with an aim of street vendors had less social authority to assert themselves, bringing their grievances before such authority figures. they were less able to negotiate for their interests, and often Alternatively, street vendors in Dakar, Senegal, have used made their interests secondary to that of their male counter- open forums, where vendor associations meet with govern- parts in negotiating with city officials. The concerns specific ment officials to discuss their concerns (Bass, 2000). to female vendors who often sell different products from the International organizations and nongovernmental organi- males and thus often have some challenges specific to their zations (NGOs) also play an important role in macro negotia- situation are often left unaddressed during macrolevel nego- tion activities of informal sector workers in general and street tiations with state officials (Bass, 2000). In addition to sex, vendors specifically. Organizations such as the Street Net Bass (2000) finds further differentiation based on age and International, International Domestic Workers Network, class where the needs of older and more established vendors, 10 SAGE Open for instance, get more attention and promoted in the negotia- street vendors. On the streets, therefore, social networks tion process than younger and less established vendors. By become key to the survival and continued use of space for so doing, Bass (2000) not only emphasizes the negotiating street vendors. In relation to this, Milgram (2011) reasons that power of vendors as a group but further draws attention to by relying on social networks to survive and use city spaces, the power differentials and differences in the ability to nego- street vendors turn absolute space into relational space. tiate that may emerge among vendors. Interestingly, these networks of relations go beyond fel- low street vendors to include more formal shop owners who, in different areas, have protected street vendors from city Negotiating at the Microlevel authorities (Crossa, 2009; Milgram, 2011). In Mexico City, for instance, Crossa (2009) writes, “Shop owners offered ref- At a more microlevel, street vendors have used a variety of uge to their street vending allies when the police or authori- approaches to negotiate for and have access to vend within ties arrived. In return, street vendors agreed to sell products city spaces and to avoid eviction. on the streets on behalf of shop owners” (p. 55). Social net- Networking and communication among colleague vendors works, thus, become important sources of power for street is one of the negotiating strategies that street vendors have vendors in negotiations. used. This is where vendors communicate with each other and Under continuous hostile regulatory circumstances warn each other of impending threats from city authorities. though, street vendors in different parts of the world have For instance, Crossa (2009), in writing about the resistance also had to modify their mode of operation to sustain their strategies of street vendors in Mexico city’s city center indi- economic ventures. One of the most common of these strat- cates that some street vendors are: “paid to monitor the streets, egies is for otherwise stationary vendors to become more watch for the police, and to warn other vendors of police activ- mobile and to carry few goods with them to sell at any point ities through the use of walkie talkies” (p. 56). Alternatively, in time, a strategy that enhances an easy get away in case Crossa (2009) reports that on a day to day basis, vendors warn city authorities approach, and ensures minimal losses in each other by “whistling to each other to sound the alert about case of confiscation of goods. In places like Baguio City in police activities or other impending threats” (p. 56). Another the Philippines, Milgram (2011) explains that vendors form of networking among vendors in using city spaces is spread a few of their goods on blankets by the streets or on where vendors send messages alerting each other of the pres- pavements. This way, vendors argue that “if we are pursued ence or otherwise of city authorities. Recio and Gomez (2013) by the police, we can easily gather the four corners of our report of what they term as “Quick Response Teams” (QRTs) blankets and run to prevent our produce from being confis- in Caloocan, Metro Manila, where these QRTs act as a form of cated” (Milgram, 2011, p. 280). In addition, Carrieri and early warning system, using text messages to warn colleague Murta (2011) writes of street vendors in Brazil that, as a vendors of imminent or ongoing eviction operations (Recio & result of frequent inspections, vendors carried with them “a Gomez, 2013). Alternatively, Steel (2012) writing about street minimal number of supplies to allow for a fast escape as vendors in Peru has indicated that street vendors, running from soon as inspectors were spotted to diminish possible losses” eviction and a raid from one place may warn other vendors at (p. 221). This strategy has also been reported among street other places of the impending threats. This is a more crude vendors in Ghana, Mexico, and Peru (Anyimah-Ackah, form of the early warning system using mobile phones and 2007; Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Crossa, 2009; walkie talkies. Similar strategies have been reported among Milgram, 2011; Solomon-Ayeh et al., 2011; Steel, 2012). In street vendors in Brazil as well (Carrieri & Murta, 2011). What Ghana, for instance, because there are usually high pedes- has been demonstrated is that street vendors make use of the trian traffic at the city center in Accra, vendors try to blend network of relations among each other as a form of security in by carrying a few wares in their hands, just as if they were for each other. This form of security has been termed by Steel pedestrians, but then announce to potential customers in a (2012) as a “social security network.” This security network of bid to sell their items (Anyimah-Ackah, 2007). In Peru, relations among vendors is important to the well-being of Steel (2012) also reports that female street vendors hide street vendors and to their continued survival on the streets. their wares in their shopping bags and blend in with the Crossa (2009) demonstrates the importance of a social secu- shoppers, creating the impression that they themselves were rity network through the following statement from one street shopping: “women selling painted gourds hid them in their vendor: shopping bags to give the impression that they were shop- ping rather than vending” (p. 1017). By being increasingly . . . here I feel at home, like with my family. I mean that among mobile and constantly moving, vendors avoid drawing too us we really help each other. There is more communication here much attention to themselves and minimize the potential among us than in my own house where I just eat and sleep. This is like one big family . . . (p. 52) losses in case city authorities arrest them. Elsewhere, some vendors have completely changed trades and vended low- The statement above is a powerful indication of the impor- value items, which offers less losses in case of confiscation tance of the network of relations and ties that exist among of goods (Steel, 2012). Forkuor et al. 11 These strategies demonstrate vendors’ innovativeness and food products like fruits and cakes for city officials and their abilities to adapt to the changing demands of their job. inspectors to enhance a vendor’s stake or claim to a particu- Similar to more formal corporate entities who are continu- lar space of business. In Malawi, Kayuni and Tambulasi ously finding innovative ways to become competitive, ven- (2009) write, dors also modify their modes of operation in response to the Several vendors explained that the police, who are supposed to challenges posed by city authorities to have continuous ensure that no one is plying their trade along the streets, are access to important urban spaces for business. What has been sometimes very corrupt. The police are given K500.00 or more made evident from the preceding is how street vendors rely and they allow these illegal street vendors to continue selling on individual agency as a way of sustaining their use of their items discreetly. (p. 92) urban public spaces. In a way, this is also a manifestation of their personal form of power. Steel (2012) terms these indi- Milgram (2011) also cites one vendor in the Philippines vidual agency strategies as “strategies of resilience” mani- as saying, “some officers even overlook our minor selling fested by vendors in negotiating and using urban spaces. infractions when we offer them sweet cooked rice cakes or Another important strategy that street vendors have used fruit to take home to their families” (p. 279). This practice in negotiating for and maintaining a space for business is to is also common among vendors in other African countries anticipate the actions and inactions of regulators. Street ven- (Mitullah, 2006), including Rwanda (Nzohabonimana, dors in Baguio city in the northern Philippines, for instance, 2013), Angola (Redvers, 2014), Ghana (Asiedu & Agyei- may sell from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. in the morning, 12 p.m. to 1 Mensah, 2008), and Malawi (Kayuni & Tambulasi, 2009). p.m. in the afternoon, and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the evening Through the offering of these gifts and the payment of reflecting the times before the start of day, during lunch tokens/bribes, relationships are negotiated and estab- break, and close of day when regulators are likely not to be lished, and infringement of rules and regulations, includ- working actively (Milgram, 2011, p. 277). In the same way, ing the use of public spaces, is subsequently punished or street vendors in Brazil, Belo Horizonte, have learnt to oper- overlooked depending also on the quality of the relation- ate very early in the morning when regulators have not begun ship (Milgram, 2011). Thus, vendors use the gifts they work. Carrieri and Murta (2011) reveal that, “One of the give to regulators as a negotiating tool, a source of power interviewees said that he works informally close to the bus that allows them to influence the decision making of city station in the morning; according to him, the inspectors are regulators. not yet on the streets at that time” (p. 223). Street vendors in Similar to Bass’s revelation regarding the differences in Peru also adopt this strategy. By vending during the lunch- benefits that macro negotiating strategies have for different time of regulators or during the evenings where control from groups based on sociodemographic characteristics, Steel the state is minimal because regulators have closed from (2012) notices important differences among vendors in their work, “Other vendors told me that they try to sell their goods abilities to negotiate with urban officials and rework the sys- while the municipal agents are eating lunch or dinner, or only tem. Steel (2012) finds that more established vendors had in the evenings when there is less control” (Steel, 2012, p. more resources and abilities to negotiate, compared with new 1018). Turner and Schoenberger (2012) also find similar vendors: strategies among street vendors in Vietnam. What this means is that the knowledge of vendors regard- Established vendors have an extra repertoire of strategies with ing the working culture of the context within which they which to confront insecurity and vulnerability. They have a work serves as an important negotiating tool in negotiating certain authority and status in the streets because they have formal regulatory requirements. learned the secrets of street vending. They are entitled to the best Sometimes, space for business is negotiated for sustained vending locations (i.e., those that are under a relatively low level use through the payment of daily tokens, in money or in kind, of surveillance by the municipality) and they have social to city authorities and their field officials (Anjaria, 2006; contacts in and off the street to escape from the hands of the municipal agents. (p. 1018) Milgram, 2011; Rajagopal, 2001). This remains one of the most common negotiating strategies for street vendors in dif- The revelations made by Bass (2000) and Steel (2012) ferent parts of the world. In Mumbai, India, for instance, pose important questions about the benefits of these negoti- street vendors sometimes have had to pay these tokens more ating strategies for different groups of street vendors. To than once a day to operate in busy public spaces: “in busy what extent do factors such as gender, age, geographical city areas, hawkers may be threatened 3 to 4 times a day by location, time of vending, and time of year affect the negoti- city workers, paying up to 4500 rupees a month to keep them ating strategies of vendors? These important questions need at bay” (Rajagopal, 2001, p. 104). It must be emphasized to be further explored through primary research studies, in though that regulators and city authorities do not always the continuous attempt to enhance the street vending sector demand tokens. On the contrary, as vendors in Baguio city in as a viable and legitimate source of employment and income the northern Philippines have demonstrated, it is quite com- for urban residents in developing countries. mon for these tokens to be offered voluntarily in the form of 12 SAGE Open Austin, R. (1994). An honest living: Street vendors, municipal reg- Conclusion ulation, and the black public sphere. The Yale Law Journal, This article contributes by providing a coherent narrative and 103, 2119-2131. a holistic picture of an otherwise fragmented literature base Baffloe, E. A. (2006, March 1). Street hawkers invade National on the dynamic relationship between street vendors and city Theatre. Daily Graphic, p. 40. Bass, L. E. (2000). Enlarging the street and negotiating the curb: regulators. Perception has been demonstrated as a much more Public space at the edge of an African market. International fluid concept, changing with time and situation. Furthermore, Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 20, 76-97. power emerges and exists in interaction, through informal Benghan, B. (2011, June 6). Extortion! AMA taskforce personnel negotiations and strategies, through network of relations, and take hawkers’ cash: 70 dismissed. The Ghanaian Times, p. 2. through individual agency and innovative strategies. Power is Bhowmik, S. K. (2005). Street vendors in Asia: A review. Economic demonstrated here not only as a tool of oppression and and Political Weekly, 40, 2256-2264. destruction but, with regard to vendors, as a tool for resistance Bonner, C. (2009). Collective negotiations for informal workers. and resilience. Unlike other research studies, street vendors Organising in the Informal Economy: Resource Books for have been demonstrated as an organized political force who, Organisers (No. 4). Manchester, UK: Women in Informal through various strategies and approaches, resist or avoid the Employment: Globalizing and Organizing. power of city authorities and continue to use public spaces. Bonner, C., & Carré, F. (2013). Global networking: Informal work- ers build solidarity, power and representation through networks These strategies have been demonstrated as reflecting the and alliances (WIEGO Working Paper No. 31). Manchester, political power of street vendors in developing countries. UK: Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing. Because street vendors and regulators possess and use power Carrieri, A. P., & Murta, I. B. D. (2011). Cleaning up the city: differently, this research emphasizes the need for these two A study on the removal of street vendors from downtown key stakeholders to collaborate and work together in enhanc- Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Canadian Journal of Administrative ing the well-being of vendors and cities in general. We recom- Sciences, 28, 217-225. mend that future researchers further investigate in detail how Chen, M. (2004, September 17–18). Rethinking the informal econ- negotiations and strategies vary among different groups of omy: Linkages with the formal economy and the formal regu- vendors vending in different public spaces. To what extent do latory environment. In Unlocking Human Potential: Linking factors such as geographical location, time of vending (day- the Informal and Formal Sectors. Helsinki, Finland: WIEGO. time or night-time), time of year, gender, and age affect and Retrieved from http://wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/publica- tions/files/Chen-Rethinking-Informal_WIDER_paper.pdf modify the negotiating strategies of vendors? These questions Chung, C., Ritoper, S., & Takemoto, S. (2010). Case study: must be explored through research to further deepen our Bangkok and access to food for low-income residents. understanding of the negotiated setting of the street in devel- Massachusetts. Retrieved from http://colabradio.mit.edu/wp- oping countries. content/uploads/2010/01/CaseStudy_Bangkok_Food_Access. pdf Declaration of Conflicting Interests Cohen, M., Bhatt, M., & Horn, P. (2000). Women street vendors: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with The road to recognition (No. 20). New York, NY: Population respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this Council. Retrieved from http://wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/ article. publications/files/Cohen-Bhatt-Horn-Women-Street-Vendors- SEEDS.pdf Crossa, V. (2009). Resisting the entrepreneurial city: Street ven- Funding dors’ struggle in Mexico City’s Historic Center. International The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 33, 43-63. for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: from doi:10.1111/j.1468-2427.2008.00823.x the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), through Donovan, M. G. (2008). Informal cities and the contestation of the Ghana Street Foods Project, Knust, Kumasi. public space: The case of Bogota’s street vendors, 1988-2003. Urban Studies, 45, 29-51. doi:10.1177/0042098007085100 References Drummond, L. (2000). Street scenes: Practices of public and pri- Anjaria, S. A. (2006). Street hawkers and public space in Mumbai. vate space in urban Vietnam. Urban Studies, 37, 2377-2391. Economic and Political Weekly, 41, 2140-2146. doi:10.1080/00420980020002850 Anyimah-Ackah, J. (2007, February 7). Hawkers, traders, and their Fine, G. A. (1984). Negotiated orders and organizational cultures. game of tricks and defiance: Can the AMA match them? The Annual Review of Sociology, 10, 239-262. Ghanaian Times, p. 8. Green, B. N., Johnson, C. D., & Adams, A. (2006). Writing narra- Asare, G. E. (2006, December 20). Hawkers take over the streets of tive literature reviews for peer reviewed journals: Secrets of the Kumasi as Christmas approaches. Daily Graphic, p. 29. trade. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 5, 101-117. Asiedu, A. B., & Agyei-Mensah, S. (2008). Traders on the run: Horn, P. (2014). Collective bargaining in the informal econ- Activities of street vendors in the Accra Metropolitan Area, omy: Street vendors. Manchester, UK: Women in Informal Ghana. Norsk Geografisk Tidsskrift/Norwegian Journal of Employment: Globalizing and Organizing. Available from Geography, 62, 191-202. doi:10.1080/00291950802335806 http://www.wiego.org Forkuor et al. 13 Jones, K. (2004). Mission drift in qualitative research, or moving Skinner, C. (2008b). The struggle for the streets: Processes of exclu- toward a systematic review of qualitative studies, moving back sion and inclusion of street traders in Durban, South Africa. to a more systematic narrative review. The Qualitative Report, Development Southern Africa, 25, 227-242. doi:10.1080/ 9, 95-112. 03768350802090709 Kayuni, H. M., & Tambulasi, R. I. C. (2009). Political transitions Solomon-Ayeh, E. B., Sylvana, R., & Decardi-Nelson, I. and vulnerability of street vending in Malawi. Theoretical and (2011). Street vending and the use of urban public space in Empirical Researches in Urban Management, 3(12), 79-96. Kumasi, Ghana. The Ghana Surveyor, 4(1). Retrieved from Milgram, B. L. (2011). Reconfiguring space, mobilizing livelihood: http://dspace.knust.edu.gh/bitstream/123456789/3423/1/ Street vending, legality, and work in the Philippines. Journal Surveyor%20Journal%203.pdf of Developing Societies, 27, 261-293. doi:10.1177/01697 Steel, G. (2012). Whose paradise? 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Street vendor liveli- from http://www.pambazuka.org/en/category/comment/34802 hoods and everyday politics in Hanoi, Vietnam: The seeds (accessed 1 October 2013). of a diverse economy? Urban Studies, 49, 1027-1044. Nzohabonimana, D. (2013, July). The plight of street vendors in doi:10.1177/0042098011408934 Kigali City. Kigali. Retrieved from https://freelancejournal- Yatmo, Y. A. (2009). Perception of street vendors as “out of ist1980.wordpress.com/2013/07/29/the-plight-of-street-ven- place” urban elements at day time and night time. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 29, 467-476. doi:10.1016/j. dors-in-kigali-city/ jenvp.2009.08.001 Popke, J. E., & Ballard, R. (2004). Dislocating modernity: Identity, space and representations of street trade in Durban, Author Biography South Africa. Geoforum, 35, 99-110. doi:10.1016/S0016- 7185(03)00002-2 John B. Forkuor holds a PhD in sociology from the Kwame Rajagopal, A. (2001). The violence of commodity aesthetics: Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Hawkers, demolition raids and a new regime of consumption. Kumasi, Ghana. He is a lecturer at the Department of Sociology and Social Text, 19(3), 91-113. Social Work, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. His research interest Recio, R. B., & Gomez, J. E. A. (2013). Street vendors, their revolves around informal sector occupations in urban areas, urban contested spaces, and the policy environment: A view from transformation and emerging social problems, and gender and Caloocan, Metro Manila. Environment and Urbanization Asia, urbanization. 4, 173-190. Kofi O. Akuoko holds a PhD in sociology from the University of Redvers, L. (2014). Angola: Selling out Angola’s street vendors. Ghana, Legon. He is a professor of sociology and the immediate Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa. Retrieved from past dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, College of Humanities http://allafrica.com/stories/201401160685.html and Social Sciences at KNUST, Ghana. His research interest is in Schindler, S. (2013). Producing and contesting the formal/infor- the areas of organizational behavior, human resource management, mal divide: Regulating street hawking in Delhi, India. Urban employee productivity, and gender and development. Studies, 51, 2596-2612. doi:10.1177/0042098013510566 Skinner, C. (2008a). Street trade in Africa : A review. WIEGO Eric H. Yeboah is a lecturer at the Department of Sociology and Working Paper No. 51. Cambridge. Retrieved from http:// Social Work in the KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. His research interests wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/publications/files/Skinner_ include microfinance, family business, domestic violence, and pov- WIEGO_WP5.pdf erty reduction issues. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png SAGE Open SAGE

Negotiation and Management Strategies of Street Vendors in Developing Countries: A Narrative Review

SAGE Open , Volume 7 (1): 1 – Feb 1, 2017

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2158-2440
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Abstract

The existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors remain fragmented and limited to specific countries and contexts. This article presents a narrative review of the existing literature on the relationship between regulators and street vendors, and through that creates a unified picture of an otherwise fragmented literature and knowledge base. The concepts of negotiation, power, social network, and perception are used to analyze the various strategies street vendors have used in gaining access to urban public spaces in different parts of the developing world. It is revealed that even though city regulators have access to formal power, street vendors possess a variety of negotiating strategies that gives them access to both formal and informal power. Keywords street vendors, urban regulators, negotiation, social network, power negotiations for public space and their outcome have impor- Introduction tant implications for the well-being of street vendors, because Street vending serves as a major source of employment and having a good space for vending is one of a variety of signifi- income for urban residents the world over, especially in cant factors that affect the well-being of street vendors (Cohen, developing countries (Chen, 2004; Donovan, 2008). Bhatt, & Horn, 2000). Operating from the streets, street vendors may work from Even though different authors have documented the nego- permanent locations, or may be mobile, carrying their wares tiation strategies of vendors in specific countries, this review to customers at places of high pedestrian concentrations presents a synthesized, holistic, and coherent insight by (Bhowmik, 2005). By their presence and activities, however, bringing together the various strategies that vendors have street vendors in different parts of the developing world have used in urban areas of developing countries and analyzing been in confrontation with city authorities or regulators over them through the lens of relevant theoretical concepts of space for business, conditions of work, sanitation, and licens- power, social networks, and social perception. ing (Anjaria, 2006; Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Milgram, 2011; Popke & Ballard, 2004; Skinner, 2008a). These two Literature Search and Analysis groups (street vendors and regulators) have interests that often contradict or compete (Austin, 1994). This section provides a description of the criteria used in As a result of the competing interests between street ven- selecting relevant articles included in this review. It further dors and regulators, street vending has come to depend largely discusses the processes used for searching for articles, on a constant negotiation among vendors, buyers, and regula- including keywords and databases used for searching. The tors (Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Recio & Gomez, 2013). section also describes the types of documents included in the Negotiations may be for public space, for economic opportu- review and explains how the analysis was undertaken. nity, and for power, and may involve the general public, shop owners, and urban regulators (Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008). Among street vendors, regulators, pedestrians, and the 1 Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana general public, negotiations may occur regarding what can be Corresponding Author: considered an acceptable and unacceptable use of space, as John B. Forkuor, Department of Sociology & Social Work, Faculty of well as what can be considered rights of the vendor to operate Social Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and earn a living from public spaces against the rights of the Kumasi, Ghana. state to maintain public spaces (Drummond, 2000). These Email: jbforkuor@knust.edu.gh Creative Commons CC-BY: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). 2 SAGE Open reports, working papers, and conference proceedings down- Criteria for Inclusion and Exclusion of loaded from the database of relevant international organiza- Relevant Documents tions such as Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing First, articles on the World Wide Web, without a clearly spec- and Organizing (WIEGO) and the International Labor ified author or organization responsible, were excluded Organization (ILO). The third and final category of docu- because information from such documents could not be veri- ments included newspaper articles and media reports from fied and relied on. different parts of the world. The first two categories may be Second, it was required that articles must primarily be a considered as scientific sources of information, while the last journal or newspaper article, a research report, or a confer- may be classified simply as media. ence proceeding reporting on primary data or primary research. Journal articles were included because journal arti- Searching for Documents: Search cles often use primary research data and were, as a result, a Engines, Keywords, Journals, and good source of primary research on the tension between ven- Databases dors and regulators in different parts of the developing world. The other sources indicated, commonly known as gray litera- As emphasized by Green, Johnson, and Adams (2006), it is ture, were included because Jones (2004) argues that as a important for authors of narrative review articles to clearly result of publication bias, a lot of information do not get pub- indicate the databases and keywords used in searching for lished in journals. Consequently, including gray literature in articles. For this review, the document repositories of inter- this review helped to eliminate the potential for such publica- national organizations like WIEGO and ILO were searched tion bias. to identify articles, working papers, conference proceedings, Third, it was required that the document should focus on and technical reports. In addition, the first author subscribed a developing country context, and must have as, either its to WIEGO’s online news roundup, receiving as a result, a primary focus or part of its focus, a discussion of the rela- compilation of global news coverage, reflecting print and tionship between regulators and street vendors. The empha- electronic media coverage on the informal economy, includ- sis on a developing country context was to ensure a good ing street vending. This proved to be an important source of synthesis of information on developing countries. Developing information on the discourse about street vendors in different countries are urbanizing at a faster rate and street vending is parts of the world. one of the most common phenomena associated with urban- Research articles included in the review were also identi- ization in developing countries. Thus, the similarity of con- fied from journals such as Environment and Urbanization, text (in terms of the vending activity, the use of public space Geoforum, Urban Studies, Journal of Development Studies, and public space regulation) allows for literature from these Journal of Modern African Studies, Qualitative Sociology, contexts to be analyzed in generating a more synthesized and Economic and Political Weekly. Some keywords and knowledge base for street vending, to be used by stakehold- phrases that were used for the article search were as follows: ers involved in street vending. street vending; trading on the streets; street traders; regulat- This review focused on literature between the year 2000 ing street vending; street vendors and urban regulators; pri- and 2016. This is because literature from the 21st century vate and public space; and ownership of public space. provides the best option of gaining a better insight into the relationship between city authorities and vendors. An insight Analysis of Documents that is more in tune with the present state of the relationship between city authorities and vendors in developing coun- Each article was read twice. The first reading was to famil- tries. Thus, focusing on literature from the 21st century pro- iarize researchers with the content of the article or publica- vides an opportunity for using relevant, up to date information tion. A second more detailed reading was conducted to on the negotiated relationship between vendors and city identify and tag the strategies that vendors use to negotiate authorities. Finally, this study’s focus is not to present a his- for space. Once identified, the individual strategies were torical review of how this relationship has changed over time summarized by a descriptive word or phrase, with the word per se but rather to provide a narrative review of the nature or phrase serving as codes for further analysis. For instance, and dynamics of this relationship as it exists presently. Hence phrases like “court action,” “bargaining with votes,” “pay- the emphasis on literature from the 21st century. ment of tokens,” and “carrying few goods” were some of the codes used to summarize the strategies used by vendors to negotiate for space. Subsequently, the codes were examined, Types of Documents Included in and similar codes put together to form a theme. Thus, within Review one theme could be found strategies from different studies. On the whole, three main categories of documents were used For instance, “court action” and “bargaining” with votes as part of this review. The first category was scientific peer were put together under the theme “macrolevel negotiating reviewed journal articles. The second category included strategies,” while “carrying few goods” and “payment of Forkuor et al. 3 tokens” came under the theme “microlevel negotiating strat- street vendors are often portrayed as offensive and illegiti- egies.” The main findings were subsequently organized and mate invaders, who inhibit the ability of cities to modernize explored around the main identified themes. and achieve a global status (Crossa, 2009; Rajagopal, 2001; Stillerman, 2006; Turner & Schoenberger, 2012). Street ven- dors are perceived as a sign of chaos and disorder; and a Summary of Data Set failure of metropolitan authorities to instill order within the In sum, this review identified 31 relevant articles and reports cities (Crossa, 2009; Rajagopal, 2001; Stillerman, 2006; from three different regions of the world: Africa, Asia, and Turner & Schoenberger, 2012). Rajagopal (2001) further South America. Eighteen of these were journal articles, six explains that in Mumbai India, “street vendors are seen as were newspaper and media reports, and seven were policy offensive, inconvenient, and illegitimate . . . a symbol of briefs, working papers or research reports. Refer to Table 1 metropolitan space gone out of control” (p. 94). The media for brief descriptions of articles and reports used for this plays a crucial role in shaping the negative perceptions of the review. public regarding street vendors (Rajagopal, 2001). Publications and news items sometimes portray a negative image of street vendors. A search of the print media in Ghana Results on articles about street vendors reveals how the phenomenon In presenting the findings, a review of how street vendors of street vending is discussed in the public arena, and the have been portrayed and perceived, and the implications of image of street vendors that emerges out of this discourse. these perceptions for the livelihoods of street vendors are Journalists use terms such as swarm, take over, invade, first presented. This is followed by a review of the key strate- flooded to describe vendors’ occupation of public spaces, gies street vendors have used in negotiating for space in suggesting the undesirability of their occupation of public urban areas. The various ways in which power, both formal spaces: those “daredevil hawkers” as one journalist simply and informal, manifests itself in this negotiated setting will puts it in the Ghanaian Times newspaper (Anyimah-Ackah, be explored. 2007; Asare, 2006; Baffloe, 2006; Benghan, 2011). Reporting on street vendors in Belo Horizonte in Brazil, Carrieri and Murta (2011) also cite instances where newspapers argue in Perceptions About Street Vendors favor of city authorities and present a negative image of Different stakeholders in different parts of the developing street vendors to readers and the public. The authors indicate world have perceived street vendors in different ways. how words such as riots, fear, criminality, violence, and Predominantly, however, these perceptions have been posi- organized crime have been used to represent vendors. As a tive or negative, focusing mostly on vendors’ occupation of result of these negative perceptions, street vending in general public space and the effects such occupation has on urban has become a phenomenon associated with poor level of city residents and urban life (Donovan, 2008). This section dis- or urban development and modernization (Anjaria, 2006). cusses how street vendors have been perceived mostly not Thus, “by working on the streets, they are engaged in an only by urban authorities but also by urban residents and activity that contradicts the supposed universal ideals of the other urban actors in relation to their use of urban space. It is modern public space” (Anjaria, 2006, p. 2142). Alternatively, revealed that even though negative perception of vendors street vendors are perceived as elements who do not belong exists, this perception is not limited to the activity of vending as part of the urban and modern landscape, they are consid- itself but mostly on the location of vending. In line with this, ered as “out of place” urban elements (Yatmo, 2009). this section reveals how perception can be fluid, changing In addition to its negative effects on the image of cities, from favorable to nonfavorable during different times of the street vendors have often been perceived as creating a safe day and different seasons. haven, through their congestion of streets, for crime to flour- ish. They are considered as untrustworthy people who, in collaboration with thieves and drug dealers deceive unsus- Negative Perception of Vending pecting members of the public and pedestrians (Austin, First, city authorities and regulators have often perceived and 1994). Thus, for some shop owners in Bogota Colombia, portrayed street vending as negatively affecting the attrac- street traders bring only disorder, filth, and the risk of crime tiveness and beauty of their cities. In African cities like and theft (Donovan, 2008). By their congestion of city Kumasi in Ghana, for instance, street vendors are perceived streets, they are perceived as making it possible for thieves to by city authorities as sources of congestion and poor envi- hide and move among them unnoticed, a situation that ronmental sanitation, and their structures are seen as destroy- adversely affects the activities of more established and for- ing “the aesthetic quality of the urban settlements” mal shop owners (Donovan, 2008). Finally, street vendors (Solomon-Ayeh, Sylvana, & Decardi-Nelson, 2011, p. 21). are also perceived as creating unfair competition for more Similarly, in Southern American and Asian cities like Mexico established shop owners, subsequently reducing the profits city in Mexico, Santiago in Chile, and Mumbai in India, of shop owners by offering pirated and counterfeit goods and 4 SAGE Open Table 1. Matrix of Articles Included in Review. Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Stillerman 2006, Santiago, Chile The Politics of Space and The paper relies on primary data and the Qualitative Sociology, JOURNAL ARTICLE Culture in Santiago, theoretical concepts of space to analyze 29, pp. 507-530 Chile’s Street Markets the strategies used by street vendors in order to get access to, maintain and use public space. Solomon-Ayeh, 2011, Kumasi, Ghana Street Vending and the use This paper used both quantitative and The Ghana Surveyor, Sylvana, and JOURNAL ARTICLE of Urban Public Space in qualitative research tools to explore how 4(1), pp. 20-31 Decardi- Kumasi, Ghana street vendors make use of urban public Nelson space and how urban authorities respond to their use of public space as a result. Anjaria 2006, Mumbai, India Street Hawkers and Public This paper relies on primary research Economic and Political JOURNAL ARTICLE Space in Mumbai findings to reveal the lived in experiences Weekly, 41(21), of street hawkers. It discusses how the pp.2140-2146 hawkers understand, interpret and relate with their occupation of public space and their interaction with state officials on a day to day basis. Anyimah-Ackah 2007, Accra, Ghana Hawkers and Traders and This newspaper article reports on the The Ghanaian Times NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Their Game of Tricks and dynamic relations between street hawkers Newspaper, Defiance: Can the AMA and city authorities and describes some of February 7, 2007, Match Them? the strategies that hawkers have used to p. 8 evade and have access to the use of public space for Hawking in Accra Asare 2006, Kumasi, Ghana Hawkers Takeover the This paper reports on the occupation of Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Streets of Kumasi as hawkers of public space and how the Newspaper. Christmas Approaches authorities are dealing with them. December 20, p. 29 Asiedu and 2008, Accra, Ghana Traders on the Run: This research relies on qualitative semi- Norwegian Journal Agyei-Mensah JOURNAL ARTICLE Activities of Street structured interviews to explore of Geography, 62, Vendors in the Accra the operation of street vendors, the 191-202 Metropolitan Area, Ghana challenges they face, and how they cope with these challenges, and their relationship with urban authorities. Baffloe 2006, Accra, Ghana Street Hawkers Invade This paper relies on interviews with state Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE National Theatre officials and street hawkers to discuss Newspaper. March hawkers’ occupation of a public facility 1, 2006 in Accra and how state officials have responded to this. Benghan 2011, Accra, Ghana Extortion! AMA Taskforce This paper reports how city officials use The Ghanaian Times NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Personnel take Hawkers’ their privileged positions to take monies Newspaper, June 6, Cash: 70 Dismissed from street hawkers with a promise of 2011, p. 2 access to public spaces for vending Bentil 2008, Accra, Ghana Hawkers Thwart Efforts to This article reports on the activities and Daily Graphic NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Beautify City operations of street hawkers and how Newspaper, these activities affect the appearance of October 13, 2008, the city of Accra p. 25 Donovan 2008, Bogota, Informal Cities and the This paper relies on questionnaire surveys Urban Studies, 45(1), Colombia Contestation of Public to analyze the tension and struggles pp. 29-51 JOURNAL ARTICLE Space: The Case of between state officials and street vendors. Bogota’s Street Vendors, 1988-2003 Drummond 2000, Vietnam Street Scenes: Practices of This paper used primary data to Urban Studies, 37(12), JOURNAL ARTICLE Public and Private Space in demonstrate the fluid nature of the pp. 2377-2391 Urban Vietnam boundary between public and private space and shows how this boundary changes or is violated in various ways. (continued) Forkuor et al. 5 Table 1. (continued) Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Kayuni and 2009, Malawi Political Transitions and This research uses qualitative research Theoretical and Tambulasi JOURNAL ARTICLE Vulnerabilities of Street tools to analyze how changes in political Empirical Vending in Malawi systems have affected street vending in Researches in Urban Malawi, focusing also on relocation and Management, 3(12) its impact on the livelihood of street vendors Milgram 2011, Baguio City, The Reconfiguring Space, This paper discusses how street vendors Journal of Development Philippines Mobilizing Livelihood: use various strategies to protest and to Studies, 27, pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vending, Legality, negotiate with city authorities for vending 261-293 and Work in the spaces in the central business district. Philippines Mitullah 2003, Kenya; Cote Street Vending in African This is a report that integrates research Background Paper D’Ivoire; Ghana, Cities: A Synthesis of findings from different African countries for the 2005 World Zimbabwe, Uganda, Empirical Findings from about the state of street vending in Africa. Development and South Africa Kenya; Cote D’Ivoire; Report RESEARCH REPORT Ghana, Zimbabwe, Uganda, and South Africa. Mitullah 2006, Kenya, Cote Street Vendors and Informal This article discusses the challenges of Pambazuka, June 1, D’ivoire, Ghana, Trading: Struggling for the street trading and how poor urban Issue 25 Uganda, Zimbabwe Rights to Trade. planning fails to incorporate street and South Africa vendors within urban spaces. REVIEW PAPER Rajagopal 2001, Mumbai, India The Violence of This paper discusses the operation of Social Text, 19(3), pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE Commodity Aesthetics: mobile food vendors in Mumbai India, 91-113 Hawkers, Demolitions analyzing local perceptions of these Raids, and a New Regime vendors and how they contest for space. of Consumption Recio and 2013, Caloocan, Metro Street Vendors, the This study analyzed the challenges facing Environment and Gomez Manila Contested Spaces, and street vendors within the context of Urbanization Asia, 4 JOURNAL ARTICLE the Policy Environment: existing laws and how street vendors (1), pp. 173-190 A View from Caloocan, negotiate with stakeholders for the right Metro Manila to use public space. Schindler 2013, Delhi, India Producing and Contesting This study discusses the fluid nature of the Urban Studies, 0(0), JOURNAL ARTICLE the Formal/Informal boundary between formal and informal pp. 1-17 Divide: Regulating Street work, showing how power may be Hawking in Delhi, India. manifested in both vendors and regulators under different circumstances. Skinner 2008a, Cambridge Street Trade in Africa: A This paper reviews existing literature from WIEGO Working REVIEW PAPER Review. different African countries, focusing on Paper No. 5 how different authorities have responded to and handled the issue of street vending. Skinner 2008b, Durban, South The Struggle for the Streets: The paper draws on secondary data Development Southern Africa Processes of Exclusion collected over a number of years on Africa, 25(2), pp. JOURNAL ARTICLE and Inclusion of Street the activities of street traders in urban 227-242 Traders in Durban, South Durban. It focuses on how different Africa political authorities have responded to street vending since 1920s Bass 2000, Dakar, Senegal. Enlarging the Street and This research uses qualitative methods International Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Negotiating the Curb: to explore the experiences of street Sociology and Social Public Space at the Edge of vendors, revealing how demographic Policy, 20 (1/2), pp. an African Market characteristics of age, gender, and class 76-97 influences the negotiating power available to various vendors. (continued) 6 SAGE Open Table 1. (continued) Year, place, and type of Author(s) publication Title of publication Description of study Publisher Boateng 2012, Accra, Ghana. A Report on Street Vending This study reports the findings of a research Labor Research and RESEARCH REPORT in Ghana that relied on interviews, focus group Policy Institute of discussions, and a review of policy Ghana. documents to explore the working conditions of vendors including taxation, relations with city authorities, and security and occupational safety. Kusakabe 2006, Thailand, Policy Issues on Street Summarizes findings from three primary International Labor Cambodia, and Vending: An Overview research studies on street vending, Organization, Mongolia. of Studies in Thailand, focusing especially on the legal status of Bangkok Office RESEARCH REPORT Cambodia, and Mongolia vendors, their access to space, and to social security. Horn 2014 Collective Bargaining in the This research used interviews and WIEGO and the RESEARCH REPORT Informal Economy: Street participatory action research approaches Solidarity Center Vendors to explore how street vendors in different (Global Labor countries engage in different forms of Program) collective negotiation around policies and regulations. Kumar 2012, India The Regularization of Street This brief gives a firsthand account of WIEGO Policy Brief POLICY BRIEF Vending in Bhubaneshwar, how stakeholders including regulators (Urban Policies) India: A Policy Model and street vendors worked together to No.7 develop a mutually beneficial strategy for managing street vending in Bhubaneshwar, India Steel 2012, Cusco, Peru Whose Paradise? Itinerant This paper is based on both qualitative International Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vendors’ Individual and quantitative data on the resistance Urban and Regional and Collective Practices strategies employed by street vendors in Research, 37(5), pp. of Political Agency in the dealing with municipal agents. 1007-1021 Tourist Streets of Cusco, Peru Crossa 2009, Mexico City, Resisting the This paper uses information from International Journal of Mexico. Entrepreneurial City: interviews, observations and archival data Urban and Regional JOURNAL ARTICLE Street Vendors’ Struggle to explore how street vendors negotiated Research, 33(1), pp. in Mexico City’s Historic the changes brought about by a newly 43-63 Centre implemented city wide program. Carrieri and 2011, Belo Horizonte, Cleaning Up the City: A This research used discourse analysis, Canadian Journal Murta Brazil Study on the Removal interviews, and desk research to of Administrative JOURNAL ARTICLE of Street Vendors From investigate the relocation of street Sciences, 28, 217- Down Town Belo vendors to an indoor shopping location. 225 Horizonte, Brazil Turner and 2012, Hanoi, Vietnam Street Vendor Livelihoods This paper relies on the concepts of Urban Studies, 49(5), Schoenberger JOURNAL ARTICLE and Everyday Politics urban livelihoods, everyday politics, and pp. 1027-1044 in Hanoi, Vietnam: The resistance to analyze the various ways by Seeds of a Diverse which street vendors in Hanoi, Vietnam Economy? have responded to the State’s policies and practices against street vending. Bonner and 2013 Global Networking: This paper relies on knowledge of global WIEGO Working Carre WORKING PAPER Informal Workers Build networks of informal workers, exploring Paper No. 31, Solidarity, Power and how they differ and how these differences September 2013 Representation Through affect their negotiation strategies. Networks and Alliances Yatmo 2009, Jakarta, Indonesia Perception of Street This article explores public perception Journal of JOURNAL ARTICLE Vendors as “Out of Place” toward street vendors and how this Environmental Urban Elements at Day perception changes during different times Psychology, 29(4), Time and Night Time. of the day. pp. 467-476. Note. WIEGO = Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing. Forkuor et al. 7 commodities for sale at very low prices (Mitullah, 2003). security for more established shop owners and the general pub- Owners of shops in Mumbai, India, and in Bogota, Colombia, lic as a whole, maintaining a watchful eye over events, and have been vocal in this regard. These shop owners have showing up to assist in case of accidents and emergencies on expressed concerns that street traders provide unhealthy the streets (Anjaria, 2006). Where shop owners hold such per- competition and drain the income of more established, regis- ceptions of street vendors, there evolves a special kind of rela- tered and taxpaying shop owners (Donovan, 2008; Rajagopal, tionship built on trust between the vendors and the shop owners 2001). Similarly, Steel (2012) reports of more established (Anjaria, 2006). This perception of street vendors as capable of shop owners in Cusco, Peru, who complain about their loss preventing crime has also been evident in Durban, South of autonomy over the sale of products and the competition Africa, where street vendors have worked hand-in-hand with that vendors bring with them, with its associated declines in the police in preventing crime on the streets (Skinner, 2008). sales and earnings. Here, street vendors have been trained by the police to monitor their streets and to inform the police when they feel something is not right (Skinner, 2008). Through such collaborative efforts, Positive and Fluid Perceptions Skinner (2008b) reports that there has been a significant reduc- These negative perceptions notwithstanding, Yatmo (2009) tion in the incidence of crime in the inner city areas of Durban. explains, based on a research in Jakarta, Indonesia, that the What is evident is that, despite the fact that street vendors are negative perception of street vendors as out of place ele- sometimes accused of promoting crime, there are instances ments in the urban landscape is not absolute but rather, a where street vendors have worked to eliminate the same forms fluid phenomenon, changing with time of day. Yatmo (2009) of crime they are accused of. There are other instances where argues by emphasizing that more established shop owners perceive street vendors not as offering unfair competition but rather as an avenue for business the evaluation of street vendors as out of place elements change development. In Mexico City in Mexico, for instance, Crossa from day-time to night-time . . . suggesting that the generalisation (2009) reports that a special alliance exists between street ven- of judgement that the street vendors are out of place in any dors and shop owners, where street vendors sometimes “sell locations at any time may not be entirely correct. (p. 473) products on the street on behalf of shop owners” (p. 55). However, like the above, the emphasis have been predomi- Yatmo (2009) explains that at night-time, respondents per- nantly on the negative effects that street vending have for for- ceived street vendors as more organized with cleaner envi- mal businesses, with very little attention paid to the benefits ronments, in contrast with their perceptions of vendors and opportunities that street vending present for formal during the days. This fluidity in the perception of vendors businesses. describes the attitude of some city authorities toward the Evidently, wherever city authorities and other members of phenomenon of street vending. There is evidence to suggest the public perceive street vendors positively, the larger urban that in some countries, urban authorities’ perceptions of ven- community benefit through the collaborative efforts and the dors and their attitude to street vending in general change positive effects that result. Interestingly, these positive effects during different economic periods (Donovan, 2008). In seem to receive very little attention from city and urban Bangkok and Thailand, for instance, the financial and eco- authorities in general. On the contrary, the argument has over- nomic recession of 1997 compelled people into the Street whelmingly been on the negative effects street vendors have Food (SF) trade as a source of income and employment on cities and the “illegality” of the street vending activity. It (Chung, Ritoper, & Takemoto, 2010). The central and munic- could be argued, however, that the problem is often not with ipal governments of Thailand and Bangkok, respectively, the activity of vending itself but mostly the location that went to the extent of encouraging citizens to take up SF vending takes place. Thus, the negative perception often vending as an alternate source of income during this finan- relate to the space/site for vending and that vending in itself is cial crisis (Chung et al., 2010). Harper (1996, cited in also perceived positively as an important economic activity Donovan, 2008) also reports that during economic difficul- providing important benefits for urban residents. ties in the 1990s, the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur reduced regu- lations on vendor licenses and set aside more areas for street vending to take place. This fluidity in perceptions empha- City Authorities and Their Response to sizes the fact that vending is only problematic during specific Street Vending periods and in particular locations. Furthermore, the argument has been made, for instance, that In line with the perceptions of a modern and global city, evic- by their mere presence, street vendors serve and act as deterrent tion and relocation campaigns are undertaken by city author- of various forms of crimes on city streets (Anjaria, 2006). In ities to “clean up” the city and make it more “attractive” Mumbai, street vendors have on occasion protected women (Anjaria, 2006; Donovan, 2008; Milgram, 2011). Where against sexual harassment (Anjaria, 2006). Consequently, ven- vendors are perceived as a nuisance, a symbol of chaos and dors and street traders are perceived as providing important disorder, eviction is often intense, involving the use of 8 SAGE Open bulldozers, and justified as necessary to restore “order” and (2001) reports that in negotiating for a space for business, “sanity” back to city life (Rajagopal, 2001). Examples of some street vendors in Mumbai, India have gone as far as such evictions and relocations have been undertaken in India, fight for this right in the law courts, taking on city authorities Vietnam, Mexico, the Philippines, South Africa, and in other and subsequently gaining the right to vend within specific developing countries in Africa (Anjaria, 2006; Donovan, city spaces (Rajagopal, 2001). This strategy is also common 2008; Drummond, 2000). among street vendors in other Indian cities like Delhi These evictions and relocations can be conceived as a (Schindler, 2013). Rajagopal, 2001) writes, demonstration of the power of cities and urban areas over Hawkers have also learned to use the courts instrumentally. residents and street vendors (Skinner, 2008a). This is Some hawkers were thus appealing for injunctions against because, within a social negotiated setting, those who are in demolitions or eviction in different courts under different names. need of something are usually constrained by the actions of When a hawker lost a case in the city civil court, he or she would those who can satisfy their needs (Fine, 1984). Similarly, move to the high court without revealing the details of the earlier street vendors, working with limited or no infrastructural case. Sometimes, a wife or a brother would move to another facilities and limited access to competitive space for busi- court over the same hawking spot. The hearings and adjournments ness are often constrained by the conditions laid down by translated into valuable business time for the hawker. (p. 107) city authorities and regulators who control vital public space. Thus, city regulators have often used the prevailing negative This strategy of negotiating for space has also been perception about street vendors as a negotiating tool to gain reported among street vendors in Bogota city in Colombia, more power, which enhances their claim over crucial public where vendors have often responded to threats of eviction space. Similar to the above, Mitullah (2006) has reasoned with a legal action arguing that eviction will go contrary to that the eviction of street vendors from busy city centers their right to work and earn a living (Donovan, 2008). What have power implications because the vacation of the streets happens then is that vendors begin to make use of the same by street vendors makes these profitable streets and city cen- institutions that legitimizes the power of regulators, they ters available to large scale and powerful formal businesses have learnt to use the same tools that the state uses against at the expense of small scale vendors. The eviction of ven- them to fight back and to gain power (Rajagopal, 2001). dors by force, the destruction of perceived illegal vending In addition to using the courts as a negotiating tool and stands, and the confiscation and sometimes destruction of source of power, other vendors as a group, have used their goods demonstrate the extent, nature, and effects of the votes as a bargaining power in negotiating with city authori- power held by city regulators (Rajagopal, 2001). ties. This is especially significant where the vendor popula- tion is large, as it is in Mexico city (Donovan, 2008). In this instance, street vendors vote into power their own nominated Negotiating for Space: Street Vendors individuals who in turn allow them to vend on city streets and City Authorities (Donovan, 2008). In other instances, vendors “ . . . secured Street vendors, despite the above information, are not “power- licenses in exchange for political support during city elec- less” in the face of eviction and relocation. As participants tions . . .” (Donovan, 2008, p. 35). Voting for people into city actively reinterpreting and renegotiating their realities, street councils and other positions has also been revealed as a com- vendors have a variety of strategies available to them, a sign of mon strategy by street traders in the northern city of Baguio their own power, in the face of eviction and relocation. This in the Philippines (Milgram, 2011). The votes of street ven- section discusses some of the strategies that street vendors, as dors are important as a negotiating tool, to the extent that it individuals and as organized groups, have used in securing can change policies, albeit temporarily. Thus, Milgram access to important locations for vending in urban areas of (2011) writes regarding vendors in the Philippines that “since developing countries. Using examples from different places, municipal elections were scheduled for May 2010, the then the section demonstrates how the use of these strategies gives current city counsellors hesitated to introduce new bye laws some form of power to street vendors in their relationship with that might arouse the displeasure of their constituents, city authorities. These negotiating strategies can be classified including vendors, and thus threaten their chances of re-elec- under two main categories: negotiations that take place at the tions” (p. 284). In Malawi in Africa, by voting for “council- macrolevel (between organized groups of vendors and state lors” of local assemblies, street vendors were assured of a authorities), and negotiations that take place at the microlevel protective voice within local authorities as these councilors (between individual street vendors and city regulators). acknowledged the support of the vendors in bringing them into office (Kayuni & Tambulasi, 2009). Kayuni and Tambulasi (2009) write the following of the councilors in Negotiating at the Macrolevel Malawi: “most councillors knew that they were brought into For some street traders and vendors, the use of public space office through mostly the support of the vendors themselves. is closely linked with the right to survive and to earn a liveli- In this regard, the vendors had, to some extent, an authorita- hood, a right that must be fought for and protected. Rajagopal tive voice through the councillors” (p. 88). Not only do these Forkuor et al. 9 placed officials lobby city authorities on behalf of street trad- International Transport Worker’s Federation, WIEGO, Latin ers in securing access to public spaces for business, they also American Waste Picker Network (Red Lacre), Global serve as crucial sources of information about the actions and Alliance of Waste Pickers, and Home Net South Asia assist inactions of city authorities regarding impending evictions informal sector workers by building a global network and and raids through the city center (Milgram, 2011). Because involving in transnational advocacy to promote the rights knowing when to run or leave a place of business is a crucial and well-being of informal sector workers including street part of the negotiation for and use of space among street trad- vendors (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, 2014). ers and vendors, well-placed sources in positions of authority Currently, The Street Net International and WIEGO are within urban areas help street traders to effectively negotiate among some of the globally recognized organizations con- for and use space to enhance their livelihoods (Milgram, cerned about the rights of informal workers in general and 2011). Milgram (2011) quotes one respondent as saying, street vendors specifically (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, “We actively sought friends in City Hall who agreed to tell us 2013; Horn, 2014). The Street Net International, a member- when a raid is scheduled if they hear about it in advance” (p. ship-based organization (such as trade unions, cooperatives, 282). In effect, one major strategy that street vendors have or associations), directly organizes street vendors, market used in getting access to and using city spaces is to either use vendors, and/or hawkers to negotiate with city authorities their votes as a bargaining power or to vote for their own into and to improve the work conditions of informal sector street public offices who in turn will lobby for the street vendors. workers (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, 2014). Once again, vendors are demonstrated as using what they They organize bargaining forums with city officials, helping have, their vote, to negotiate and gain power (Crossa, 2009). to promote the exchange of information and ideas on critical One other macro strategy that street vendors have used to issues facing street vendors, market vendors, and hawkers. In negotiate for space in urban areas is through public demon- addition, they help enlighten street workers and other infor- strations. These demonstrations may take the form of public mal sector workers on how to exercise their rights against rallies, where vendors sometimes march on city authorities harassment (Bonner, 2009; Bonner & Carré, 2013; Horn, and hand over demands and grievances, an approach which 2014). In attempt to fight for their rights, informal workers has been used effectively by vendors in Durban, South form association and then liaise with these international Africa, in preventing eviction (Skinner, 2008b) as well as in organizations/NGOs to help them negotiate with government Caloocan in Manila, the Philippines (Recio & Gomez, 2013). officials to effect changes in policies. Sometimes these public demonstrations take violent forms, Through these macro strategies, street vendors in differ- as has been reported in Mexico City in Mexico (Crossa, ent parts of the developing world have sought to stake a 2009). Crossa (2009) cites an example from April 2002 claim for their use of public space and to negotiate against where hundreds of street vendors came together in Mexico eviction and relocation campaigns. It is important to note City, sprayed the police with tear gas, and hit them with though that even though the macro strategies discussed sticks when the police attempted to evict them from operat- above have been demonstrated to be generally effective for ing in the city center. Here, street vendors gain power through all street vendors and to represent their power, there remain numbers and use some of the same strategies that city author- considerable within-group differences in terms of its benefits ities have used against them in resisting eviction and main- for different categories (age, sex, and class) of vendors. taining the use of city spaces. Thus, individual vendors may benefit differently from these Another form of public demonstration, as revealed by strategies depending on their sex, age, and social class. Bass Milgram (2011) and Recio and Gomez (2013) take the form (2000) in a research of the negotiating strategies of street of letter writing campaigns organized by members of street vendors in Senegal draws attention to how the above sociode- vendor associations aimed at city authorities, demonstrating mographic characteristics define the benefits that particular against an impending eviction and proving, through their let- groups of vendors gain. Using evidence from her research, ters, why they should be allowed to operate under certain Bass (2000) makes a strong argument for how gender, age, occasions. Recio and Gomez (2013) report how street ven- and class determines the negotiating power of different dors in Caloocan, Metro Manila, in the Philippines engage groups. Bass (2000) finds, for instance, that because female city regulators and authorities in discussions with an aim of street vendors had less social authority to assert themselves, bringing their grievances before such authority figures. they were less able to negotiate for their interests, and often Alternatively, street vendors in Dakar, Senegal, have used made their interests secondary to that of their male counter- open forums, where vendor associations meet with govern- parts in negotiating with city officials. The concerns specific ment officials to discuss their concerns (Bass, 2000). to female vendors who often sell different products from the International organizations and nongovernmental organi- males and thus often have some challenges specific to their zations (NGOs) also play an important role in macro negotia- situation are often left unaddressed during macrolevel nego- tion activities of informal sector workers in general and street tiations with state officials (Bass, 2000). In addition to sex, vendors specifically. Organizations such as the Street Net Bass (2000) finds further differentiation based on age and International, International Domestic Workers Network, class where the needs of older and more established vendors, 10 SAGE Open for instance, get more attention and promoted in the negotia- street vendors. On the streets, therefore, social networks tion process than younger and less established vendors. By become key to the survival and continued use of space for so doing, Bass (2000) not only emphasizes the negotiating street vendors. In relation to this, Milgram (2011) reasons that power of vendors as a group but further draws attention to by relying on social networks to survive and use city spaces, the power differentials and differences in the ability to nego- street vendors turn absolute space into relational space. tiate that may emerge among vendors. Interestingly, these networks of relations go beyond fel- low street vendors to include more formal shop owners who, in different areas, have protected street vendors from city Negotiating at the Microlevel authorities (Crossa, 2009; Milgram, 2011). In Mexico City, for instance, Crossa (2009) writes, “Shop owners offered ref- At a more microlevel, street vendors have used a variety of uge to their street vending allies when the police or authori- approaches to negotiate for and have access to vend within ties arrived. In return, street vendors agreed to sell products city spaces and to avoid eviction. on the streets on behalf of shop owners” (p. 55). Social net- Networking and communication among colleague vendors works, thus, become important sources of power for street is one of the negotiating strategies that street vendors have vendors in negotiations. used. This is where vendors communicate with each other and Under continuous hostile regulatory circumstances warn each other of impending threats from city authorities. though, street vendors in different parts of the world have For instance, Crossa (2009), in writing about the resistance also had to modify their mode of operation to sustain their strategies of street vendors in Mexico city’s city center indi- economic ventures. One of the most common of these strat- cates that some street vendors are: “paid to monitor the streets, egies is for otherwise stationary vendors to become more watch for the police, and to warn other vendors of police activ- mobile and to carry few goods with them to sell at any point ities through the use of walkie talkies” (p. 56). Alternatively, in time, a strategy that enhances an easy get away in case Crossa (2009) reports that on a day to day basis, vendors warn city authorities approach, and ensures minimal losses in each other by “whistling to each other to sound the alert about case of confiscation of goods. In places like Baguio City in police activities or other impending threats” (p. 56). Another the Philippines, Milgram (2011) explains that vendors form of networking among vendors in using city spaces is spread a few of their goods on blankets by the streets or on where vendors send messages alerting each other of the pres- pavements. This way, vendors argue that “if we are pursued ence or otherwise of city authorities. Recio and Gomez (2013) by the police, we can easily gather the four corners of our report of what they term as “Quick Response Teams” (QRTs) blankets and run to prevent our produce from being confis- in Caloocan, Metro Manila, where these QRTs act as a form of cated” (Milgram, 2011, p. 280). In addition, Carrieri and early warning system, using text messages to warn colleague Murta (2011) writes of street vendors in Brazil that, as a vendors of imminent or ongoing eviction operations (Recio & result of frequent inspections, vendors carried with them “a Gomez, 2013). Alternatively, Steel (2012) writing about street minimal number of supplies to allow for a fast escape as vendors in Peru has indicated that street vendors, running from soon as inspectors were spotted to diminish possible losses” eviction and a raid from one place may warn other vendors at (p. 221). This strategy has also been reported among street other places of the impending threats. This is a more crude vendors in Ghana, Mexico, and Peru (Anyimah-Ackah, form of the early warning system using mobile phones and 2007; Asiedu & Agyei-Mensah, 2008; Crossa, 2009; walkie talkies. Similar strategies have been reported among Milgram, 2011; Solomon-Ayeh et al., 2011; Steel, 2012). In street vendors in Brazil as well (Carrieri & Murta, 2011). What Ghana, for instance, because there are usually high pedes- has been demonstrated is that street vendors make use of the trian traffic at the city center in Accra, vendors try to blend network of relations among each other as a form of security in by carrying a few wares in their hands, just as if they were for each other. This form of security has been termed by Steel pedestrians, but then announce to potential customers in a (2012) as a “social security network.” This security network of bid to sell their items (Anyimah-Ackah, 2007). In Peru, relations among vendors is important to the well-being of Steel (2012) also reports that female street vendors hide street vendors and to their continued survival on the streets. their wares in their shopping bags and blend in with the Crossa (2009) demonstrates the importance of a social secu- shoppers, creating the impression that they themselves were rity network through the following statement from one street shopping: “women selling painted gourds hid them in their vendor: shopping bags to give the impression that they were shop- ping rather than vending” (p. 1017). By being increasingly . . . here I feel at home, like with my family. I mean that among mobile and constantly moving, vendors avoid drawing too us we really help each other. There is more communication here much attention to themselves and minimize the potential among us than in my own house where I just eat and sleep. This is like one big family . . . (p. 52) losses in case city authorities arrest them. Elsewhere, some vendors have completely changed trades and vended low- The statement above is a powerful indication of the impor- value items, which offers less losses in case of confiscation tance of the network of relations and ties that exist among of goods (Steel, 2012). Forkuor et al. 11 These strategies demonstrate vendors’ innovativeness and food products like fruits and cakes for city officials and their abilities to adapt to the changing demands of their job. inspectors to enhance a vendor’s stake or claim to a particu- Similar to more formal corporate entities who are continu- lar space of business. In Malawi, Kayuni and Tambulasi ously finding innovative ways to become competitive, ven- (2009) write, dors also modify their modes of operation in response to the Several vendors explained that the police, who are supposed to challenges posed by city authorities to have continuous ensure that no one is plying their trade along the streets, are access to important urban spaces for business. What has been sometimes very corrupt. The police are given K500.00 or more made evident from the preceding is how street vendors rely and they allow these illegal street vendors to continue selling on individual agency as a way of sustaining their use of their items discreetly. (p. 92) urban public spaces. In a way, this is also a manifestation of their personal form of power. Steel (2012) terms these indi- Milgram (2011) also cites one vendor in the Philippines vidual agency strategies as “strategies of resilience” mani- as saying, “some officers even overlook our minor selling fested by vendors in negotiating and using urban spaces. infractions when we offer them sweet cooked rice cakes or Another important strategy that street vendors have used fruit to take home to their families” (p. 279). This practice in negotiating for and maintaining a space for business is to is also common among vendors in other African countries anticipate the actions and inactions of regulators. Street ven- (Mitullah, 2006), including Rwanda (Nzohabonimana, dors in Baguio city in the northern Philippines, for instance, 2013), Angola (Redvers, 2014), Ghana (Asiedu & Agyei- may sell from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. in the morning, 12 p.m. to 1 Mensah, 2008), and Malawi (Kayuni & Tambulasi, 2009). p.m. in the afternoon, and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the evening Through the offering of these gifts and the payment of reflecting the times before the start of day, during lunch tokens/bribes, relationships are negotiated and estab- break, and close of day when regulators are likely not to be lished, and infringement of rules and regulations, includ- working actively (Milgram, 2011, p. 277). In the same way, ing the use of public spaces, is subsequently punished or street vendors in Brazil, Belo Horizonte, have learnt to oper- overlooked depending also on the quality of the relation- ate very early in the morning when regulators have not begun ship (Milgram, 2011). Thus, vendors use the gifts they work. Carrieri and Murta (2011) reveal that, “One of the give to regulators as a negotiating tool, a source of power interviewees said that he works informally close to the bus that allows them to influence the decision making of city station in the morning; according to him, the inspectors are regulators. not yet on the streets at that time” (p. 223). Street vendors in Similar to Bass’s revelation regarding the differences in Peru also adopt this strategy. By vending during the lunch- benefits that macro negotiating strategies have for different time of regulators or during the evenings where control from groups based on sociodemographic characteristics, Steel the state is minimal because regulators have closed from (2012) notices important differences among vendors in their work, “Other vendors told me that they try to sell their goods abilities to negotiate with urban officials and rework the sys- while the municipal agents are eating lunch or dinner, or only tem. Steel (2012) finds that more established vendors had in the evenings when there is less control” (Steel, 2012, p. more resources and abilities to negotiate, compared with new 1018). Turner and Schoenberger (2012) also find similar vendors: strategies among street vendors in Vietnam. What this means is that the knowledge of vendors regard- Established vendors have an extra repertoire of strategies with ing the working culture of the context within which they which to confront insecurity and vulnerability. They have a work serves as an important negotiating tool in negotiating certain authority and status in the streets because they have formal regulatory requirements. learned the secrets of street vending. They are entitled to the best Sometimes, space for business is negotiated for sustained vending locations (i.e., those that are under a relatively low level use through the payment of daily tokens, in money or in kind, of surveillance by the municipality) and they have social to city authorities and their field officials (Anjaria, 2006; contacts in and off the street to escape from the hands of the municipal agents. (p. 1018) Milgram, 2011; Rajagopal, 2001). This remains one of the most common negotiating strategies for street vendors in dif- The revelations made by Bass (2000) and Steel (2012) ferent parts of the world. In Mumbai, India, for instance, pose important questions about the benefits of these negoti- street vendors sometimes have had to pay these tokens more ating strategies for different groups of street vendors. To than once a day to operate in busy public spaces: “in busy what extent do factors such as gender, age, geographical city areas, hawkers may be threatened 3 to 4 times a day by location, time of vending, and time of year affect the negoti- city workers, paying up to 4500 rupees a month to keep them ating strategies of vendors? These important questions need at bay” (Rajagopal, 2001, p. 104). It must be emphasized to be further explored through primary research studies, in though that regulators and city authorities do not always the continuous attempt to enhance the street vending sector demand tokens. On the contrary, as vendors in Baguio city in as a viable and legitimate source of employment and income the northern Philippines have demonstrated, it is quite com- for urban residents in developing countries. mon for these tokens to be offered voluntarily in the form of 12 SAGE Open Austin, R. (1994). An honest living: Street vendors, municipal reg- Conclusion ulation, and the black public sphere. The Yale Law Journal, This article contributes by providing a coherent narrative and 103, 2119-2131. a holistic picture of an otherwise fragmented literature base Baffloe, E. A. (2006, March 1). Street hawkers invade National on the dynamic relationship between street vendors and city Theatre. Daily Graphic, p. 40. Bass, L. E. (2000). Enlarging the street and negotiating the curb: regulators. Perception has been demonstrated as a much more Public space at the edge of an African market. International fluid concept, changing with time and situation. Furthermore, Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 20, 76-97. power emerges and exists in interaction, through informal Benghan, B. (2011, June 6). Extortion! AMA taskforce personnel negotiations and strategies, through network of relations, and take hawkers’ cash: 70 dismissed. The Ghanaian Times, p. 2. through individual agency and innovative strategies. Power is Bhowmik, S. K. (2005). Street vendors in Asia: A review. Economic demonstrated here not only as a tool of oppression and and Political Weekly, 40, 2256-2264. destruction but, with regard to vendors, as a tool for resistance Bonner, C. (2009). Collective negotiations for informal workers. and resilience. Unlike other research studies, street vendors Organising in the Informal Economy: Resource Books for have been demonstrated as an organized political force who, Organisers (No. 4). Manchester, UK: Women in Informal through various strategies and approaches, resist or avoid the Employment: Globalizing and Organizing. power of city authorities and continue to use public spaces. Bonner, C., & Carré, F. (2013). Global networking: Informal work- ers build solidarity, power and representation through networks These strategies have been demonstrated as reflecting the and alliances (WIEGO Working Paper No. 31). Manchester, political power of street vendors in developing countries. UK: Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing. Because street vendors and regulators possess and use power Carrieri, A. P., & Murta, I. B. D. (2011). Cleaning up the city: differently, this research emphasizes the need for these two A study on the removal of street vendors from downtown key stakeholders to collaborate and work together in enhanc- Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Canadian Journal of Administrative ing the well-being of vendors and cities in general. We recom- Sciences, 28, 217-225. mend that future researchers further investigate in detail how Chen, M. (2004, September 17–18). Rethinking the informal econ- negotiations and strategies vary among different groups of omy: Linkages with the formal economy and the formal regu- vendors vending in different public spaces. To what extent do latory environment. In Unlocking Human Potential: Linking factors such as geographical location, time of vending (day- the Informal and Formal Sectors. Helsinki, Finland: WIEGO. time or night-time), time of year, gender, and age affect and Retrieved from http://wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/publica- tions/files/Chen-Rethinking-Informal_WIDER_paper.pdf modify the negotiating strategies of vendors? These questions Chung, C., Ritoper, S., & Takemoto, S. (2010). Case study: must be explored through research to further deepen our Bangkok and access to food for low-income residents. understanding of the negotiated setting of the street in devel- Massachusetts. Retrieved from http://colabradio.mit.edu/wp- oping countries. content/uploads/2010/01/CaseStudy_Bangkok_Food_Access. pdf Declaration of Conflicting Interests Cohen, M., Bhatt, M., & Horn, P. (2000). Women street vendors: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with The road to recognition (No. 20). New York, NY: Population respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this Council. Retrieved from http://wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/ article. publications/files/Cohen-Bhatt-Horn-Women-Street-Vendors- SEEDS.pdf Crossa, V. (2009). Resisting the entrepreneurial city: Street ven- Funding dors’ struggle in Mexico City’s Historic Center. International The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 33, 43-63. for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: from doi:10.1111/j.1468-2427.2008.00823.x the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), through Donovan, M. G. (2008). Informal cities and the contestation of the Ghana Street Foods Project, Knust, Kumasi. public space: The case of Bogota’s street vendors, 1988-2003. Urban Studies, 45, 29-51. doi:10.1177/0042098007085100 References Drummond, L. (2000). Street scenes: Practices of public and pri- Anjaria, S. A. (2006). Street hawkers and public space in Mumbai. vate space in urban Vietnam. Urban Studies, 37, 2377-2391. Economic and Political Weekly, 41, 2140-2146. doi:10.1080/00420980020002850 Anyimah-Ackah, J. (2007, February 7). Hawkers, traders, and their Fine, G. A. (1984). Negotiated orders and organizational cultures. game of tricks and defiance: Can the AMA match them? 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The violence of commodity aesthetics: Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Hawkers, demolition raids and a new regime of consumption. Kumasi, Ghana. He is a lecturer at the Department of Sociology and Social Text, 19(3), 91-113. Social Work, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. His research interest Recio, R. B., & Gomez, J. E. A. (2013). Street vendors, their revolves around informal sector occupations in urban areas, urban contested spaces, and the policy environment: A view from transformation and emerging social problems, and gender and Caloocan, Metro Manila. Environment and Urbanization Asia, urbanization. 4, 173-190. Kofi O. Akuoko holds a PhD in sociology from the University of Redvers, L. (2014). Angola: Selling out Angola’s street vendors. Ghana, Legon. He is a professor of sociology and the immediate Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa. Retrieved from past dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, College of Humanities http://allafrica.com/stories/201401160685.html and Social Sciences at KNUST, Ghana. His research interest is in Schindler, S. (2013). Producing and contesting the formal/infor- the areas of organizational behavior, human resource management, mal divide: Regulating street hawking in Delhi, India. Urban employee productivity, and gender and development. Studies, 51, 2596-2612. doi:10.1177/0042098013510566 Skinner, C. (2008a). Street trade in Africa : A review. WIEGO Eric H. Yeboah is a lecturer at the Department of Sociology and Working Paper No. 51. Cambridge. Retrieved from http:// Social Work in the KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana. His research interests wiego.org/sites/wiego.org/files/publications/files/Skinner_ include microfinance, family business, domestic violence, and pov- WIEGO_WP5.pdf erty reduction issues.

Journal

SAGE OpenSAGE

Published: Feb 1, 2017

Keywords: street vendors; urban regulators; negotiation; social network; power

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