MANZINI – Second-hand clothing traders (dobha phasi) say Manzini’s ongoing bus rank reorganisation is pushing their businesses to the brink, with many now fearing they may not survive the temporary relocation.
The traders, who have been moved to the Handcraft Market as part of the city’s transport reorganisation, say the new trading space has become a nightmare for businesses that depend almost entirely on bus commuters.
They argue that while the relocation has been described as temporary, the current location is too far from both the Old Trade Fair Temporary Bus Rank and the Satellite Bus Rank, making it difficult for their regular customers to locate them.
One of the affected traders said the uncertainty surrounding the relocation has left many vendors worried about how they would continue providing for their families. “We are really concerned about whether we will survive this so-called temporary relocation. We rely on commuters for our business, but now we are very far from where they pass.
People simply don’t know where we are,” she said. She added that conditions at the Handcraft Market had made matters worse because the trading spaces allocated to second-hand clothing vendors were much smaller than those they previously occupied.
“The space is too small for our businesses. We cannot bring all our stock because there is nowhere to keep it. We are forced to bring limited clothing, which means customers don’t have many options to choose from.”
The trader further explained that they were only permitted to trade on Sundays, Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays because the market operates primarily as a handcraft market.
“We can only sell on four days of the week. The other days are reserved for handcraft vendors because this is a handcraft market. That means we are losing business every week while still expected to pay our expenses and feed our families,” she said.
According to the traders, their businesses depend heavily on foot traffic generated by busy transport routes, with many customers making spontaneous purchases while travelling through the city. They say the relocation has drastically reduced customer numbers, with some vendors spending entire trading days without making meaningful sales.
Several traders said they feared they would eventually be forced to close their businesses if a more accessible trading site was not identified soon.
The traders stressed that they were not opposed to the city’s redevelopment programme, but believed authorities should have considered the impact the relocation would have on businesses that had operated successfully for years.
“We understand that development has to happen, but development should not destroy people’s livelihoods. We simply want a place that is close to commuters because that is where our customers are,” another trader said.
The vendors revealed that they have now sought assistance from the Federation of Eswatini Small Business Community (FESBC), hoping the organisation would help engage authorities on their behalf.
They said their appeal to FESBC was driven by fears that many of the affected women could lose their only source of income if the matter was not addressed urgently. The traders are now calling for a trading space closer to the temporary bus ranks, saying accessibility was essential for the survival of their businesses. Meanwhile, FESBC has expressed concern over the relocation, saying the process appeared to have been poorly planned and lacked adequate consultation with the affected business owners.
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The Manzini Bus Rank now remains deserted following the relocation of public transport services to temporary bus ranks as part of the city’s redevelopment project. The changes have also displaced several informal traders, with second-hand clothing vendors raising concerns over the impact on their livelihoods. (Pic: Siphosethu Dlamini)