Informal economy
workers like street vendors come up short along each
of the dimensions of poverty and well-being:
- Human rights (social, economic, political and
civic rights of the poor)
- Income and basic needs (basic household needs to
live a life of dignity)
- Human development (health, education, longevity)
- Social inclusion (representative access and
"voice" in public institutions and processes) |
The Kenya National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal
Traders (KENASVIT), is a national network of informal
workers organized across seven regions in Kenya
(Nairobi, Migori, Nakuru, Eldoret, Mombasa, Machakos,
Kisumu) to improve
the rights and working conditions of street vendors, and to
affect policy in Kenya’s urban areas.
Street vendors and informal traders play a central role in
the everyday lives of people around the world. These
"informal economy" workers, who are not safeguarded by
legal or social protections, have long existed as
purveyors of affordable goods and services to a global
public that spans class and income.
The work of KENASVIT is groundbreaking and vital because
street vendors and informal traders are among the most
marginalized and vulnerable of the world’s workers, yet they
make significant contributions to their local and national
economies.
Creating stable informal sector employment sustains the
economic, political, and social health of communities around
the world. Creating new models of informal worker organizing
provides a unified voice for an
otherwise unrepresented constituency. Women street vendors
and their children face particular challenges, as the
vending environment poses serious constraints to earning a
sustainable living with dignity.
Through outreach, organizing, training, and leadership
development, KENASVIT links seven "urban alliances" which
build collaborative relationships with other civil actors
such as trade unions, academic partners from the University
of Nairobi’s Institute for Development Studies, the Kenya
Land Alliance, StreetNet, and human rights organizations
like UUSC.
This year, UUSC’s support for KENASVIT will:
- Consolidate and strengthen organizing within and among the
seven existing regional urban alliances (Nairobi, Migori,
Nakuru, Eldoret, Machakos, Mombasa, and Kisumu).
- Increase the visibility and voice of the alliance to local
and national policymakers by providing UUSC accompaniment on
visits by KENASVIT delegations to local mayors, ministers,
and public officials.
- Produce new tools for outreach, education, and advocacy
such as KENASVIT's bimonthly newsletter
(PDF)
.
- Assist traders to consolidate recommendations that will
inform new legislation affecting them ("Hawker’s Bill").
- Strengthen leadership of KENASVIT’s governing body, the
National Executive Committee, by providing training in
conflict resolution, negotiation, and team leadership.
- Expand into several new urban areas in Kenya, and a
pan-African network to support and promote workers’ rights
for informal traders and vendors, focusing on five African
countries (Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and
Uganda).
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