Urbanization may be viewed as both a blessing and a curse on
many levels as while the urban area is rich in societal , economic value and opportunities
it is also filled with congestion of people, pollution and traffic. The informal
sector thrives on such opportunity and in itself feeds off the chaos of the
city. In my blogs I chose the topic of the informal sector which
consists mainly of street vendors. The title of the blog is Urbanization The Double-edged
Sword as street vending could be viewed easily from both positive and negative
perspectives.
While walking to school one morning this set up caught my attention as the numerous bottles gleamed and shone in the days light. I peered even closer as my steps drew nearer to discover that these were potions. Yes potions being sold betwixt the bus route and the Curep main road. Behind the table sat an old aged man hunched over leering at me. Now I asked the man what was he selling? to which he replied 'the cure for all aches and ailments’. He went on to brandish his hand over his wears and go off on a tangent on its healing properties. He even claimed to have a cure for aids which could be seen in the picture. While I must commend the man on his creativity it made me wonder what lengths would people go to in order to make ends meet.
Its not new news to hear about street vendors in the
informal sector fighting for basic rights and by no means this is a only a local occurrence
here we hear from new York vendors facing very similar
problems.
We see them every day either first hand, on the papers or in
the news the persons who take action into their own hands and try to hustle to
make a living be it the persons selling slippers and clothes to very flamboyant
ideas like the one depicted in the image here. These people aim to harness benifits from the urban
hubs but in the non-conventional way leading to a bustling and thriving informal
sector. It seems the busier the urban area the more persons you find in the
informal sector there. I have always found this particular sector of urban
areas as quite interesting and can come up with some very important questions that in
time I will explore with my future blogs.
Please feel free to share your views and thoughts on this
topic and come along for the ride as my blog progresses.
Aye the man by HiLo with the cure for AIds! LOL. I didn't even read the blog yet. I immediately start to laugh
ReplyDeleteLike this take on urbanisation. Economists tend to push this whole expansion, expansion, expansion thing with no regard for the impact this expansion has on the environment or other people. I saw this when I examined Gasparillo in my blog.
ReplyDeleteMost street vendors are marginalized by the formal sectors because they do not meet the needs that they desire. It could also be that this man has retired and is not receiving pension to pay for whatever bills he may have and if he is receiving pension it may not be enough. Most of the times as you said people would go to many lengths to make ends meet and to care for their loved one or themselves. The informal sector has been here for centuries and is not likely to fade into black anytime soon.
ReplyDeleteYou don't know that gramps probably has the sure for AIDS in that bottle or is just some seriously strong mauby with some extra special spices in it!
Gentrification? What is the trouble? What is the double-edged sword of which you speak? What are the debates?
ReplyDelete