- Kisumu is moving to end roadside hawking.
- Vendors will be assigned spaces in designated markets.
- The policy aims to support small businesses, women and youth.
Kisumu City County Government has moved to end roadside hawking, requiring small-scale traders to operate instead from designated spaces within modern markets.
Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o announced the measure under the 2026 Kisumu County Trade and Markets Policy. The policy is designed to reorganise informal trading and create a more structured business environment across the county.
Under the new arrangement, vendors will be assigned specific trading areas rather than operating along roads and other informal points. According to Nyong’o, the goal is to give small businesses a better chance of attracting customers and boosting their earnings.
He described the policy as more than a paper commitment. Instead, he framed it as a practical blueprint intended to empower informal traders, grow micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, and modernise the local economy from the ground up.
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Reaction from traders has so far been largely positive. Several argue that roadside hawking has made it harder for market-based businesses to attract customers.
Business owners said the changes could work in traders’ favour. They explained that when hawkers sell goods everywhere, customers often never make it into the market itself. But with vendors consolidated into designated areas, they expect more foot traffic and sales for market-based businesses.
Others pointed to a different challenge facing local traders: intense competition from established enterprises. They warned that without adequate support, emerging entrepreneurs risk stalling before they can grow.
IYBA-SEED Project Manager Nduta Ndirangu said the reforms go beyond decongesting the streets. She said they are also designed to build a fairer, better-managed market system, strengthen cooperatives, and expand opportunities for women and youth, while encouraging local enterprise development and greater consumption of locally produced goods and services.
By Benedict Aoya
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