The Life of a Street Vendor
“I started selling vegetables in 1988. I had 3 kids under 5years. Eleven years later, my husband passed away. I had 5 kids by then. So, it is safe to say I have been a single parent for most of my life.”
I held on to the business, & still at it to this day. It has sustained me and my children's livelihood all this time. I have managed to provide food, clothes, shelter, health, & education for my family, through the vegetable proceeds. Not only have I managed to cover my children, but also supported some needs of my extended families, and the community in ways I could. One of my greatest accomplishments is putting all my children through school. I wanted to give them the best shot in life, no matter what it took. Regardless of the weather, or my health, I went out to sell vegetables. They all completed high school in different schools (Lobamba, St Mary's, Salesian, Bosco, & Dwalile), depending on what was feasible at the time. My second-born finished her degree at Limkokwing University of Creative Technology. My third-born studied at Nazarene College of Teaching. My last-born however, is working in the clothing firms in Matsapha. The returns from selling vegetables are no longer sufficient to help her enrol in any college.
Over the years, profits have increasingly declined for vegetable vendors. The shops sell everything, including tomatoes, which were previously sold only by us. I understand that it is convenient for Swazis to buy vegetables there; I plea that they may buy from us first: more items for lower prices. Our vegetables are fresh, straight from the local gardens. This means the local farmer also benefits from your support. Support us with the awareness that you are directly supporting our families, homes, & our children's future. I urge Swazis to be intentional in supporting street vendors. We sell perishables and are prone to huge losses. Support us, as we support the local farmer; let us grow together as Swazis.
“Respect is a virtue, it is important. Young vendors, listen to the elders on the street, let them coach you; we can all coexist & win.”
Shops and consumer behaviour are not the only factors that affect our profitability. The younger vendors overtake us, & they do not want to keep orderly conduct. They run to the cars, which is something we, the elderly cannot do. We sit under the umbrellas with the hope that someone will stop by. Respect is a virtue, it is important. Young vendors, listen to the elders on the street, and let them coach you; we can all coexist & win. Be conscientious of the milestones we, the elders, have achieved doing this business. You are not the first ones here, and neither are we. Respect the business, honour it, & it will honour you. Together we can find solutions of what we can sell and how. Everybody can have a market & make a living. When everyone is for themselves, we all suffer. There is no time as this in history, that we Swazis must be accountable to & for each other.
Whether we have made a profit or not, some costs remain. Here we hired 2 security persons, & 1 to clean the toilets for us. Each of these women here must contribute E40 per month towards the salaries of the 3 people, without fail. Sometimes, in pre-covid it would be very difficult to even afford this seemingly small amount. The covid limitations have made that even harder. Furthermore, electricity & water bills are paid for by ourselves. We carry all these costs, on top of our varying responsibilities at home.
Developmentally, the government said that our place here in Mahlanya is just not conducive for development (isicintsi), hence we do not get attention or help from them. Though we are 'esicintsini' according to them, we too have lives, families, dreams, and hopes. We sure deserve to be listened to, validated & assisted by our government.
I wish for the government to create opportunities for graduates so that they can move on with their lives, & reduce the burden on us. Hiring the graduates, who we, the parents have worked so hard to produce, makes the load lighter on our shoulders, it takes care of our children's mental health, a reward to us as parents, & a glimpse of hope for the next generation. You don't know the pain of seeing your child's certificate on the wall, without a reflection on that education in their life. We have carried the bulk of the work in sustaining our families & communities so far; we only ask the government to make the load easier than it has been to date.
