Loss of income

live in the peri-urban areas surrounding the city. When the bans were instituted, vendors, who do not have a definite place of work, began to sell their merchandise to people in their neighborhoods. “I could not come to the street. The military and police could beat people (they found vending) on the streets. And, I had to look for something to eat … so, I began selling to people who lived near me.”29

In a bid to avoid the beatings, whenever the women street vendors saw the security officers, they would run away, leaving behind their merchandise and sustaining heavy losses.

“At the time, the president had told people to use lemon and ginger, but whenever I tried to sell them, security would confiscate my merchandise. KCCA was not bothering us, but the police were harassing us.”30

“When they came to beat us, you could leave the merchandise and you would take off. So, you look for more capital to access merchandise in the market. When the capital (I had) finished, I started washing clothes (in the neighborhood) for money.”31

Women street vendors who dared to defy security directives to sell their wares on the streets of Kampala City were mostly single mothers, women whose husbands lost their jobs due to closure of businesses, or those living with physical disabilities. “I felt bad when the lockdown was announced, because as a leader, I knew the heavy burden I was going to carry. Our cooperative has people with disabilities, single mothers, (and) widows. (Because the security officers were beating street vendors) I had to feed them yet, I also

29 Molly Wambi, street vendor, Kamwokya, Kampala City 30 Asina Zawedde, street vendor, Wandegeya, Kampala City 31 Molly Wambi, street vendor, Kamwokya, Kampala City had nothing … but, if I earned something, I would give my disabled colleagues something to eat.”32

Although food vendors were allowed to operate and sleep in market places,33 the challenge was how to replenish their stock in the midst of a standing ban on public transport.

“These things which we are selling, we don’t get them just here in the market … we go and buy them in markets near the border. But, when they closed the transport, it was hard for us to travel there and bring these items.”34

“You have seen the distance from my market, Driwala Market, to Arua town… sometimes we would hire a truck but because of the bad state of the bridge, the trucks could not travel here. If the trucks took the longer route to Driwala Market, the driver would charge the vendors (exorbitant fares).”35

All the women interviewed belonged to cooperative societies that are members of SIHA Network, and had accumulated some savings. However, for women street vendors who had to routinely abandon their merchandise to security officers, these savings quickly dwindled to nothing. “We have a cooperative, Kawempe Women Vendors Cooperative Society. We save, give out loans, so I had my savings. I managed to get my all savings to use in my day-to-day life.”36

32 Asina Zawedde, street vendor, Wandegeya, Kampala City 33 ‘Vendors opt to sleep in markets, walk to work’ (Daily Monitor, 2020) https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/news/ national/vendors-opt-to-sleep-in-markets-walk-towork-1882730 Accessed on 30 June 2022. 34 Mercy Onzizuyo, market vendor, Awindiri Market, Arua City 35 Jane Akwero, market vendor, Driwala Market, Arua City 36 Mercy Wambi, street vendor, Kamwokya, Kampala City