By:George Honzeri.

With an assortment of fresh fruits ranging from mangoes, tomatoes ,lemons, cucumbers and bananas, a boy likely to be in his teens pushes a two wheeled cart across Rezende Street towards Julius Nyerere in search of a better livelihood.

Such is the daily life of vendors who toil everyday selling different kinds of wares especially fresh foods in the streets of Harare and other urban areas.

The imposition of the lockdown regulations by the government of Zimbabwe in January had come as a thorn in the flesh for the ordinary people especially those employed in the informal sector which is mainly dominated by the vending community.

Places especially those frequented by many people such as terminuses have become havens for vendors who dominate those areas in search of customers.

Copacabana, Charge Office, Simon Muzenda Street terminus and Mbare Musika have become the most popular vending sites in a short space of time after the lifting of the lockdown regulations.

‘We have to take the risk of arrest by police because we want to survive. ’Said a vendor selling fresh fruit at the corner of First Street and Jason Moyo Avenue.

Unauthorised vendors who sell their merchandise in unregulated areas have become common sight once again which can result in another wave of covid as there is complacency on the part of both vendors and customers.

Most areas where these vendors frequent have no toilets and some of them disturb the movement of people on pavements and even on verandas of businesses that pay tax to the government.

Most of the theses vendors do not have sanitization facilities and if care is not taken another wave is inevitable.