WE’VE FAILED TO REMOVE STREET VENDORS, CITY HEALTH CHIEF SAYS

Latwell Nyangu

HARARE City Council director of health, Dr Prosper Chonzi, has conceded that the removal of street vendors has not been effective.

Given the cholera outbreak, Dr Chonzi agrees that this is a dire situation for Harare and its residents.

He has welcomed the Government’s measures to contain the cholera outbreak in the city under the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) programme.

Dr Chonzi believes a collective effort is needed to change the mindset of the general public towards street food, noting that buying food from unauthorised vendors fuels the cholera and typhoid outbreaks.

“Generally, the economy is playing against us and we have this hide-and-seek chase with vendors.

“We have challenges for now and, as health director, I am not happy with the vending situation in the city.

“We may need to rely on a big mindset change where people know that if you buy food from everywhere chances of you getting cholera, or typhoid are high.

“If you are spending a dollar buying food from everywhere, you may end up spending more going to the hospital.

“So, I am appealing to the general public to change their mindset.

“Yes, we have failed but let’s work on this issue together.”