MWEWA VOWS TO PLANT PALM TREES ACROSS LUSAKA AFTER STREET VENDORS MOVE.
Lusaka City Council Mayor-Elect Mwewa Chitambala says the city will undergo a major facelift, including the planting of palm trees along selected streets once street vending has been completely phased out.
Mr Chitambala says his vision is to transform Lusaka into a cleaner and more attractive city, with properly designated trading spaces and improved public infrastructure.
He said street vendors who claim there is no space available in markets are merely making excuses, arguing that Lusaka has sufficient capacity to accommodate traders currently operating from the streets.
According to Mr Chitambala, Lusaka has 28 markets with more than 15,000 available trading spaces, which he says are enough to accommodate the city’s street vendors.
He said the ongoing process of relocating street vendors to designated markets is expected to be completed within 72 hours.
Mr Chitambala said the markets offer traders access to infrastructure such as sanitation facilities, running water and designated trading spaces.
“One thing we will do after we completely remove the street vendors from the streets is to plant palm trees to beautify Lusaka City even more,” he declared.
Mr Chitambala also urged street vendors to embrace the relocation, saying the move would provide them with a more organised trading environment.
“One thing our street vendors must know is that they will love it in the markets. People will go and buy from designated markets and they will make money from there. The other advantage is that they will have proper infrastructure, good running toilets and water. How is that a bad thing?” he wondered.
He said the transformation would form part of efforts to restore order and improve the appearance of Lusaka.
– Zambian Watch News