THE REGULATION OF STREET VENDING: A JAMAICAN CASE STUDY

THE REGULATION OF STREET VENDING:A JAMAICAN CASE STUDY

Presenter Name: Muriel Heaven

Presentation Date: March 9, 2014

Overview

• Problem Statement

• Purpose of Study

• Research Questions

• Literature Review

• Research Design

• Sample

• Data Analysis Technique

• Findings

• Conclusions

• Implications

Problem Statement• A well regulated, generally accepted street

vendor system in Jamaica should :

• Climbing Unemployment: Average Unemployment rate climbed to 12.9 per cent in January of 2011,

14.1 per cent in January 2012 and 14.3 per cent in April 2012 for both sexes.

Males 9.5 per cent to females 16.8 per cent in January 2011 and for January 2012 the unemployment rate had increased by 1% to 10.5% for males but by 1.5% to 18.3 % for females. 

Youth Unemployment tripled the National Average Unemployment!• Successive governments have made fruitless attempts at discouraging

street vending by the seizure of goods, imposition of fines, destruction of stalls and finally imprisonment (Kodilinye, 2000).

• Market fees are seen as exorbitant and facilities inadequate.• Regulations are perceived as unfair or unevenly applied.

o provide a cushion of employment opportunities for the educated and uneducated as well as laid-off persons

o help to eliminate cycles of povertyo help accomplish fiscal targets and the economic prosperity of our country Jamaica.

Purpose of StudyThis research study seeks to identify and highlight the opportunities available for better management of street vending through:

• collaboration with vendor organizations,

• respectful communication,

• adequate regulations,

• removal of the negative stigma associated with street vending,

• the alleviation of the burden of unfair penalties and of the harassment of vendors by the law enforcement agencies. This will be done by reviewing literature which shows:

• the negative effects of unfair or inadequate regulations in the cities of developed countries such as New York

• the contrasting positive effects of adequate regulations and collaboration of stakeholders, on the development of commercial viability in other developing countries such as India; and recent developments in China will likewise be shown.

• The study will also highlight the success stories in Jamaica and the impact it has had on the lives of vendors and customers alike.

Research Question 1• How

valuable is street vending perceived to poor communities in Jamaica?

Research Question 2• What are

vendors’ perceptions of the street vending regulations in Jamaica and the penalties for contravening them?

Research Question 3• What role can

street vendors play in changing the negative perception of street vending in Jamaica?

Research Question 4• How are the

authorities perceived as viewing street vendors?

Research Question 5• What is the Role

of Public/private Partnerships to street vending in Jamaica?

Research Questions

Street Vending and its Value

• Street vending is a livelihood which is often the means of survival for the poor and unskilled in many countries.

• Street vendors retail goods in small quantities affordable to the poor and delivers them sometimes to their door – reducing their transportation & delivery costs.

Regulations for Street

Vending

• Review of literature from various sources on the subject indicates that regulations for street vending vary from country to country and from city to city based on the date, time, location and the items being sold (Wasserman, 1998).

Perceptions of How the Authorities View Street

Vending• Bhowmik

(2006) asserted in a study he did on seven Asian cities, that street vending or hawking is perceived as illegal activity in many cities, and hawkers are treated as criminals.

Changing the Negative Perception of

Street Vending

• The role of street vending as a legal livelihood and as a valuable contributor to the Jamaican economy needs to be recognized and emphasized (Brown-Glaude, 2010).

Literature Review

Role of Public

/private Partnerships

• Digicel Jamaica (2009) published the account of their partnership with KSAC in which they handed over 28 of 53 stalls to vendors in the Mandela park area of Half Way Tree in order to organize vending in the area and at the same time clean up and beautify the environment.

Summary

• The review of literature has revealed and highlighted valuable research on street vendors and street vendor regulations done by many researchers in several countries.

Common problems faced

by street vendors around

the world include:• insecure place of

work: due to competition for urban space

• capital on unfair terms: due to dependence on wholesale traders

• uncertain quantity, quality, and price of goods: due to dependence on wholesale traders

• lack of infrastructure: shelter, water, sanitation

• ambiguous legal status: leading to harassment, evictions, and bribes

• negative public image

Benefits to be derived for

street vendors from

formalization:• secure vending sites• access to capital on

fair terms: a loan product tailored to their daily need for working capital

• bargaining power with wholesale traders

• infrastructure services at vending sites: shelter, water, sanitation

• license to sell and identity cards

• freedom from harassment, evictions, and bribes

• positive public image

Literature Review contd.

Research was done using mixed-method design consisting of both qualitative design, which is recommended for deducing the meaning which society (individuals and groups) attributes to a social or human problem; and quantitative design, which facilitates the numeric description of trends, attitudes or opinions of a population (Creswell, 2009).

The issues which were examined such as the oppression and alienation of the street vendors by officials demanded the kind of approach modeled by the Advocacy and Participatory Worldview, a “worldview typically seen with qualitative research, but it can be a foundation for quantitative research as well” (p. 9).

Research of this sort (Advocacy and Participatory Worldview) serves to focus the thinking, awareness and eventually the voice of the participants on matters of mutual concern, constraining them to act together collectively to find solutions to their problems, thus forming an agenda to improve their lives (Creswell, 2009)

Research Design

SampleDescription of Sample• A sample is a selected subset of a population which may be used by a researcher to

make generalizations about the entire population (Leedy & Ormrod, 2010, p. 204). “To some extent, the size of an adequate sample depends on how homogenous or heterogeneous the population is – how alike or different its members are with respect to the characteristics of research interest (Leedy & Ormrod, 2010, p. 214).

• A mixed purposeful sampling strategy which involves using more than one sampling strategy for a particular purpose was used to select a sample of 24 street vendors chosen from the population of vendors selling on the streets (sidewalks) of downtown Kingston..

• Street vendors were therefore chosen using the maximum variation strategy which involved purposively selecting a most diverse variety of people, which meant choosing male and female vendors of various products with varied modes of vending (and various ages).

• The opportunistic or emergent strategy (following new leads during fieldwork; taking advantage of the unexpected; flexibility) which involved using a sample as the opportunity arose was also used, especially where vendors were on the alert to make a hasty retreat whenever the police approached for fear of arrest (Patton, 2003).

A woman moves her goods from Princess Street in downtown Kingston yesterday as members of a joint clean-up team from the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation and the Island Special Constabulary Force look on. - Jermaine Barnaby/Photographer

Vendors Swept From City StreetsPublished: Sunday | January 26, 2014

Data Analysis Technique• The aim of qualitative data analysis is claimed to be the

classification of things, persons, events and the properties which characterize them.

• During this phase which was conducted in concert with the data collection phase, the data was coded using as many categories (age, gender etc.) as possible with a view to identifying and describing themes and patterns from the participants perspective; attempts were then made to understand these themes and patterns (Creswell, 2009).

• Descriptive statistics were calculated on the data transferred from the questionnaires by keying (typing) them into the data editor of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences more recently renamed the Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) on a computer and the output analysed

FindingsResponses to Research Question 1How valuable is street vending perceived to poor communities in Jamaica?

• In their responses to both the questionnaires and the interviews the participants all said that they felt that street vending was very valuable to poor communities in Jamaica.

• 83.5% of the 24 street vendors, “strongly agree” 12.5%) “agree” and 4.2%) “partly agree” that street vending was valuable to Jamaica .

• Fifty percent of the street vendors interviewed said that their success with street vending fluctuated – it had its good and bad and up and down times. o Seventy five percent (75%) of the vendors interviewed who had said that business was bad or fluctuated,

stated that the biggest deterrent to their business was harassment from law enforcement teams who did not allow them to sell their produce or confiscated their goods and charged them high fines, sometimes with imprisonment.

• Seventy percent (70%) of street vendors interviewed indicated that although they felt that street vending would be something they would encourage anyone who could not readily find any other occupation to do, they would advise them that it was very risky at this time because of the regulations, poor conditions and the constant harassment they faced. “It is very difficult and you can go to prison for being a vendor!” said V.8-M

Findings contdResponses to Research Question 2What are vendors’ perceptions of the street vending regulations in Jamaica and the penalties for contravening them?

• The responses to Research question 2 from the questionnaire were supported by responses received on the interview. Fifty five percent (55%) of the vendors felt that there should be some vendor regulations but 66.7% of them felt that the current regulations are unfair to the vendors and 79.2% of them felt that the regulations and penalties for breaking them should be more lenient, in view of the crisis in the economy.

• The questionnaires and the structured interviews were amazingly alike in their findings about street vendors. Unanimous results were received from five variables on the questionnaire: Nationality – all Jamaican, Employment status –all “self-employed”, “I feel street vendor regulations should be more lenient” –all “strongly agree”, “Street vending should be looked at like any other business” –all “strongly agree” and “Vendors should have unions like other businesses” –all “strongly agree”. It may be inferred also that the information derived from the population sample was a fair reflection of what may be found in the general population of street vendors in Jamaica. Triangulation of the data through the comparison of the results of the questionnaire with the responses from the same participants in the interview showed agreement and that the results of the survey are valid.

• The findings from the research agreed with what was found in the literature, that street vendors valued their trade as a means of survival and saw it as a valuable contributor to poor communities. The finding also support the view that the negative perception of street vending and its value has fueled harsh reactions from the authorities and law enforcement teams which have denied the rights of the vendors trade and of the vendors themselves

Findings contdResponses to Research Question 3What role can street vendors play in changing the negative perception of street vending in Jamaica?• 95% of vendors responding to the questionnaire “strongly agree” and 4.2% “agree” that street

vending should be looked at like any other business. Therefore 99.2% tended to agree that street vending should be looked at like any other business.

• 87% “strongly agree” and 12.5% “agree” that street vendors should be put in teams for maintenance and upkeep, to keep the place where they worked clean.

• 41.7% “strongly agree” and 25% “agree” that street vendors should pay taxes.

• 79.2% “strongly agree” and 16.7% “partly agree” that the amount that Street Vending contributes to the total goods, services, agricultural products and minerals produced in Jamaica (Gross Domestic Product (GDP)) should be published as a means to change the negative perception of street vending.

• About 17% of the participants doing the interview said that there were street vendors who would not cooperate and therefore made things bad for others by blocking the thoroughfare and littering the place.

• They said that they felt the negative perception of vendors would change if they kept the areas where they worked clean, did not block the pavement or sidewalks and behaved decently.

Findings contdResponses to Research Question 4How are the authorities perceived as viewing street vendors?

• The participants interviewed revealed that vendors felt that the law enforcement officers seem to take things into their own hands at times and were unjust in their treatment of the vendors.

• Participants made special mention of the treatment meted out to elderly vendors and even pregnant women who were chased by the officers and pushed around, sometimes resulting in bodily harm. Some heavily built vendors fell and hurt themselves in an effort to escape the police.

• All of the younger men under age 46 (71% of the male vendors interviewed) stated that they were made to feel like criminals and sometimes worse than criminals. They said they sometimes felt like giving up street vending and turning to a life of crime. This was so especially when their goods were confiscated and stolen or destroyed and they were left without any means of supporting themselves and their families

Findings continuedResponses to Research Question 5What is the Role of Public/private Partnerships to street vending in Jamaica?

• 91.7% of vendors responding to the questionnaire “strongly agreed” and 8.3% “agreed” that street vendors should have unions just like other businesses. The results closely matched the responses to the interview in which respondents indicated that they needed better representation of their problems and suggestions to the authorities and the government.

• 4.16% said that they did not know of a vendors’ association. Some 54% of the participants said that they knew of a vendors’ association but expressed distrust of the leaders of the association

Conclusions

• It is hoped that by the application of positive models of street vending and elimination of the negative ones, the Jamaican Society may be benefited by a reduction in unemployment. Easier entry by newly unemployed persons into businesses of their own should also be facilitated resulting in the improvement of revenue collection. Regulations which are reasonable, simple and easily understood would redound to street vendors registering and complying more readily with the regulations. Properly managed and monitored street vendor regulations and personnel would serve to eliminate harassment from law enforcement teams and extortionists, resulting in less unemployment and increase the intake of revenue.

Implications

• Paramount to the success of any efforts towards improving the regulation of street vending in Jamaica is the removal of the negative stigma associated with street vending and the decriminalization of the trade.

• Greater inclusiveness, communication and collaboration with the vendors and vendor organizations, by government and municipalities, in the planning and development of regulations to manage street vending, would result in better organization and cooperation of vendors and better management of street vending in Jamaica.

• The benefits of public and private partnerships in making the environment in which the street vendors operate more attractive to both vendors and customers may be seen in the results of the successful initiative taken by Digicel in collaboration with the KSAC to previous problem areas such as the Half-Way-Tree park.

• Research also suggests that especially in recessionary times, more assistance be given to street vendors and a more lenient approach be used by relieving the mental pressure due to the activities of law enforcement agencies and fee collectors. It is therefore suggested that more be done to defend the vendors from extortion and to make them feel a valuable part of the society.