A street market in a crowded HCM City neighborhood. (Photo: laodong.com.vn) HCM City (VNA) - Authorities in the southern economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City haveissued an ultimatum, ordering all its districts to submit plans to the People’sCommittee on getting rid of unplanned markets by July.
Unplanned markets, which are areas with aconcentration of street vendors selling agricultural produces and other commonitems, usually crop up on pavements based on people’s needs and conveniencesthat are not met by modern supermarkets and stores, not part of city’splanning.
However, products sold in such spots are moreoften than not of questionable origin and food safety is a big issue.Authorities frequently crack down on such markets, both for food safety andduring urban order restoration campaigns.
Many experts are sceptical about theeffectiveness of these campaigns, and argue that if forceful measures are nottaken to address the root cause of the issue, then the street markets willreturn after the campaigns end.
There is no official figure on the number ofstreet markets in HCM City, but the number may be well in hundreds as thesemarkets are ubiquitous in every district and ward, cropping up most often inand around poor neighbourhoods, areas with a large number of boarding houses,near processing zones and industrial parks.
For instance, in the two-km radius around Tan Binhindustrial park, there are dozens of such unplanned markets lining thepavements of Pham Van Bach, Che Lan Vien-Nguyen Huu Tien, Truong Chinh and otherstreets, and they have been around for years now.
Vendors set up stalls and sell products such asfish and vegetables over the pavements, and there is rubbish, decaying leaves,and wastewater right underneath, making the area an eyesore and posing serioushygiene risks.
Most vendors are workers or poor labourers fromother provinces who have come to the city to try and earn their livelihood.
Nguyen Thi Thuc, a textile worker from Tan Bìnhindustrial park who hails from the central Thanh Hoa province, told Lao Dong(Labour) newspaper that she lives in a rented place nearby and after work, shegoes to these street markets to buy food. “I know there is no guarantee for thesafety of food sold here, but it is affordable, and, most of all, the marketsare convenient. I just thoroughly wash the produce and cook it very well,” Thucsaid.
The situation is similar around Linh Trungprocessing zone in Thu Duc district, or Tan Thuan in district 7 and Tan Taoindustrial park in Binh Tan district.
A member of Tan Binh industrial park’smanagement board said that unplanned, temporary street markets always come uparound industrial parks and areas with boarding houses.
It shows that they meet the demands of theworkers who live in these areas, so the solution to the problem is a moreconsumer-responsive distribution network.
Nguyen Gia Thai Binh, vice-chairman of Binh Tan districtPeople’s Committee, said one of the characteristics of his district is the highconcentration of industrial zones, with companies such as the Taiwan-basedPouyuen footwear company, which alone employs some 97,000 workers. “Theplanning did not account for the workers’ needs for a proper market, so peoplestarted selling agricultural produce and other products on the streets nearlarge manufacturers for the workers there, and slowly street markets wereformed,” Binh said.
He admitted that the efficiency of inspectionsand raids is limited, as once the enforcement force leaves, vendors return andresume their trade.
To get rid of these street markets, Tran VinhTuyen, Vice Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee, has asked themunicipal Department of Industry and Commerce to set up proper stalls andstores that sell food, consumer goods, and other price-stabilised commoditiesin crowded neighbourhoods and industrial zones.
Now, Binh Tan district is drawing up a detailedplan for indoor markets and convenience stores. So far, 100 convenience storeshave been established, mostly serving workers in industrial parks.
Similarly, Tan Binh district is looking at stepsto encourage its street vendors to move to stalls and stores, and plans tooffer financial support to those who come from very poor backgrounds, said LeThanh Binh, Vice Chairman of Tan Binh district People’s Committee.
“If the whole political system does its best,coordinating efficiently with each other in this campaign to clear out streetmarkets in addition to establishing consumer commodities distributors, then Ibelieve the days of street markets will be over,” said Tran Quoc Minh, a memberof HCM City’s lawyer delegation.-VNA
Unplanned markets, which are areas with aconcentration of street vendors selling agricultural produces and other commonitems, usually crop up on pavements based on people’s needs and conveniencesthat are not met by modern supermarkets and stores, not part of city’splanning.
However, products sold in such spots are moreoften than not of questionable origin and food safety is a big issue.Authorities frequently crack down on such markets, both for food safety andduring urban order restoration campaigns.
Many experts are sceptical about theeffectiveness of these campaigns, and argue that if forceful measures are nottaken to address the root cause of the issue, then the street markets willreturn after the campaigns end.
There is no official figure on the number ofstreet markets in HCM City, but the number may be well in hundreds as thesemarkets are ubiquitous in every district and ward, cropping up most often inand around poor neighbourhoods, areas with a large number of boarding houses,near processing zones and industrial parks.
For instance, in the two-km radius around Tan Binhindustrial park, there are dozens of such unplanned markets lining thepavements of Pham Van Bach, Che Lan Vien-Nguyen Huu Tien, Truong Chinh and otherstreets, and they have been around for years now.
Vendors set up stalls and sell products such asfish and vegetables over the pavements, and there is rubbish, decaying leaves,and wastewater right underneath, making the area an eyesore and posing serioushygiene risks.
Most vendors are workers or poor labourers fromother provinces who have come to the city to try and earn their livelihood.
Nguyen Thi Thuc, a textile worker from Tan Bìnhindustrial park who hails from the central Thanh Hoa province, told Lao Dong(Labour) newspaper that she lives in a rented place nearby and after work, shegoes to these street markets to buy food. “I know there is no guarantee for thesafety of food sold here, but it is affordable, and, most of all, the marketsare convenient. I just thoroughly wash the produce and cook it very well,” Thucsaid.
The situation is similar around Linh Trungprocessing zone in Thu Duc district, or Tan Thuan in district 7 and Tan Taoindustrial park in Binh Tan district.
A member of Tan Binh industrial park’smanagement board said that unplanned, temporary street markets always come uparound industrial parks and areas with boarding houses.
It shows that they meet the demands of theworkers who live in these areas, so the solution to the problem is a moreconsumer-responsive distribution network.
Nguyen Gia Thai Binh, vice-chairman of Binh Tan districtPeople’s Committee, said one of the characteristics of his district is the highconcentration of industrial zones, with companies such as the Taiwan-basedPouyuen footwear company, which alone employs some 97,000 workers. “Theplanning did not account for the workers’ needs for a proper market, so peoplestarted selling agricultural produce and other products on the streets nearlarge manufacturers for the workers there, and slowly street markets wereformed,” Binh said.
He admitted that the efficiency of inspectionsand raids is limited, as once the enforcement force leaves, vendors return andresume their trade.
To get rid of these street markets, Tran VinhTuyen, Vice Chairman of the HCM City People’s Committee, has asked themunicipal Department of Industry and Commerce to set up proper stalls andstores that sell food, consumer goods, and other price-stabilised commoditiesin crowded neighbourhoods and industrial zones.
Now, Binh Tan district is drawing up a detailedplan for indoor markets and convenience stores. So far, 100 convenience storeshave been established, mostly serving workers in industrial parks.
Similarly, Tan Binh district is looking at stepsto encourage its street vendors to move to stalls and stores, and plans tooffer financial support to those who come from very poor backgrounds, said LeThanh Binh, Vice Chairman of Tan Binh district People’s Committee.
“If the whole political system does its best,coordinating efficiently with each other in this campaign to clear out streetmarkets in addition to establishing consumer commodities distributors, then Ibelieve the days of street markets will be over,” said Tran Quoc Minh, a memberof HCM City’s lawyer delegation.-VNA
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