Government admits no welfare impact assessment before vendor removals

HARARE — Zimbabwe’s Public Service Ministry has admitted it did not conduct a social impact assessment before an operation to remove vendors from streets in Harare and other urban areas, despite concerns that thousands could lose their livelihoods.

Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Edgar Moyo made the admission in the Senate after Sen. Zvidzai asked what measures had been put in place to protect people affected by the removals.

Zvidzai said the operation was removing large numbers of people from vending spaces and warned that a similar programme in 2005 had failed to provide adequate support for those who lost their livelihoods.

“Currently, there is an operation to remove millions of people from vending in the streets of Harare and other urban areas,” Zvidzai said.

“We are fully aware that a similar programme happened in 2005 and it was unsuccessful because there was no arrangement to ensure that those who lose their livelihoods could get some sort of a halfway house and social safety nets.”

Moyo said the government had general social protection programmes but had not created a special programme for vendors affected by the operation.

“The Government always has in its programmes, a component for social protection. We know that during the operation, as he has indicated, some people might lose livelihoods and maybe some children might be affected here and there but then we are saying that there will be no special programme for them,” Moyo said.

“There will always be that programme which caters for such eventualities. So, should there be people whose livelihoods are affected in such a way, they then qualify for social welfare assistance. We will be willing to assist them in the normal way.”

Zvidzai pressed the minister on whether the government had assessed how many people would be affected and the social consequences of removing them from their vending sites.

“One would assume that preceding a massive programme like this, the government would have done an impact assessment on the numbers of people who would be affected,” he said.

“Clearly, I would think the Minister should be aware that if somebody is pushed off their normal vending place, automatically they have lost their livelihood. As this happened, was there an impact assessment on the social challenges people would face?”

Moyo replied that his ministry had not conducted such an assessment.

“From the angle of the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, we have not done that assessment,” he said.

“However, let this House be assured that should there be any eventuality where social welfare assistance or social protection measures are required, we are ready to do that. We have the resources, the structures and everything required to handle that kind of situation.”

Moyo cautioned that he could not speak for the ministry directly responsible for the vendor removal operation.

“I will not speak for the parent ministry that is responsible for the issue that we are discussing currently. Perhaps an assessment was done but I am not very sure,” he said.

“However, we are ready to handle any eventuality that may arise.”

The exchange leaves unclear whether any other ministry carried out a broader impact assessment before the removals began.

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