HARARE — Harare City Council is deploying at least 300 municipal police officers across the capital in a major operation to remove vendors trading from unauthorised sites, beginning at the junction of E.D. Mnangagwa Road, formerly Enterprise Road, and Samora Machel Avenue.
The operation starts today under the final phase of the Chenesa Harare campaign. Authorities have warned vendors operating in the central business district that those who ignore instructions to leave the streets and move to legal trading areas will be arrested. Officers are expected to move from the initial site into other busy and densely populated parts of the city as the enforcement drive expands.
Mayor Jacob Mafume said the number of municipal police officers could rise above 300 if the situation required a larger deployment.
“We are going to increase the complement of municipal police officers who will be on the streets tomorrow to about 200 or 300, or more should the situation require,” he said.
The first stage of the operation is expected to focus on persuading vendors to leave undesignated trading points and relocate to approved markets. The council has said the process will move in phases, but officers will also enforce by-laws against traders who remain in prohibited areas or return after being removed.
“We are simply moving from phase to phase and emphasising the need for vendors to operate in an orderly manner and at designated places,” Mafume said.
The mayor said the city needed to reclaim pavements, roadways and other public spaces that had become occupied by informal traders. He said the congestion was affecting pedestrians, motorists, public transport and formal businesses operating in the central business district.
“We need to free up space for traffic, for pedestrians, for vehicles and the city to be able to breathe in terms of navigability and also the ease of doing business,” he said.
The crackdown follows a seven-day government directive giving vendors operating from unauthorised sites until 9 September to move to designated markets. The directive covers illegal vending structures, stalls and sites in Harare and is expected to be extended to other cities and towns after the capital’s operation.
Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe said the condition of the streets could no longer be allowed to continue.
“The situation is no longer acceptable and it is no longer business as usual,” he said.
Garwe said the clean-up was intended to restore public order, cleanliness and the ability of vehicles and pedestrians to move through the city. He said the operation was not aimed at victimising vendors or formal traders, while recognising that informal trading supports thousands of Zimbabwean families.
“Let me state from the outset that this is not a declaration of war against vendors or formal traders.”This is not an act of victimisation against anyone,” he said.
The minister also said the Government recognised the economic circumstances that had driven many residents into informal trading and the role played by small businesses in sustaining households. At the same time, he said vending had to take place within municipal by-laws and in legally designated marketplaces.
The City of Harare has pledged to provide alternative locations for traders displaced from pavements, road junctions and other unauthorised sites. Acting Town Clerk Advocate Warren Chiwawa said the council had prepared a plan with Government and security agencies covering space allocation, relocation and the servicing of approved markets and perimeter trading areas.
“The City of Harare stands ready, willing and mobilised to make the tough decisions necessary to restore order, dignity and cleanliness to our capital,” Chiwawa said.
He said the condition of the central business district required immediate and coordinated intervention. Municipal police will work with other Government agencies in joint operations targeting illegal night vending, unregulated structures and activities contributing to disorder.
The city has identified Chemanza, Glen View Area 8 and Mbare Musika as important parts of its relocation plan. Chemanza market is more than 50 per cent complete and is expected to accommodate more than 4,000 vendors. Glen View Area 8 is due for refurbishment, while Mbare Musika is already operating. A further trading site is expected to be established in the Coca-Cola area.
“We acknowledge that the state of our central business district demands immediate and coordinated intervention,” Chiwawa said.
“The city of Harare has prepared concrete cooperation plans to support Government directives, including space allocation and relocation, identification and servicing of designated safe havens and perimeter markets to accommodate relocated vendors,” he said.
The council’s enforcement powers cover more than simply occupying a pavement. Harare’s vendor by-laws prohibit the sale of goods or foodstuffs without a valid permit or lease agreement, and prohibit trading at an undesignated place. The hawkers’ by-laws also cover trading outside a specified area, failing to comply with a lawful order from an authorised official and obstructing a road or traffic way with a motor vehicle or pushcart.
The city’s anti-litter by-laws separately prohibit depositing or abandoning litter in a public place. Those provisions are expected to form part of the wider Chenesa Harare operation, which has linked illegal vending with blocked walkways, accumulated rubbish, unregulated structures and public health concerns.
Harare’s CBD has faced repeated clearance exercises over several years, with vendors returning after enforcement officers leave. Previous operations have often exposed the difficulty of moving traders away from busy commercial areas where customers are concentrated. In October 2024, a relocation exercise at Copacabana was temporarily suspended after clashes between rival trader groups.
The latest operation is also taking place amid complaints about so-called space barons who control sections of the city’s pavements and charge traders daily fees to use public space. Traders have reported being forced to pay between US$1 and US$5 a day for access to prime vending points. The authorities have said the clean-up will address the informal structures and networks that have grown around unauthorised trading sites.
Vendors have raised concerns about the distance, affordability and condition of some approved markets. Cleopatra Chikono, a trader at Copacabana Musika, said vendors were not opposed to relocation but needed sites that could be reached by customers and could accommodate the large number of people who depend on street trading.
“Government should leave us here at Copacabana Musika since no vehicles pass through this area,” she said.
“We are not saying we cannot be relocated, but we need proper alternatives that provide access to customers and are also affordable.”
Another trader said planning and infrastructure should be put in place before vendors were removed from the CBD.
“Infrastructure is a key component when dealing with these issues. Before thinking about removing anyone, there should be proper planning,” he said.
The Zimbabwe National Vendors Association has urged its members to comply with the Government directive and trade only from approved areas. Chief executive officer Abel Zvobgo said the organisation supported the move and would encourage vendors to avoid returning to the usual illegal sites.
“We want everybody not to go to the usual illegal spots which they’ve been operating from.”Let them respect, let them allow the Minister to take the due course of removing our membership,” he said.
Chiwawa said the council would engage vendors’ organisations and residents’ associations during the operation so that traders understood the new arrangements. The municipality has also promised to service designated trading areas and perimeter markets as vendors are relocated.
For the council, the immediate priority is to clear pavements and road junctions so that traffic, pedestrians and emergency movements are no longer obstructed. For vendors, the operation marks a decisive change from repeated warnings to a coordinated enforcement campaign backed by municipal police, Government departments and security agencies. The first officers will begin at E.D. Mnangagwa Road (popularly known by its former name, Enterprise road) and Samora Machel Avenue before the operation spreads through Harare’s crowded commercial areas.
The Government has said municipal police will remain in cleared areas to prevent vendors from returning and that the wider clean-up will later move to other urban centres. In Harare, the success of the campaign will now depend on whether the city can keep the CBD clear while moving thousands of traders into markets with enough space, services and access to customers.