This research highlights the cultural impact of street vending as a social safety net and an outlet for national production and cohesion. Previous studies on the street vending business in developing countries neglect the cultural motive which is an important factor in household quality of life, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. In those studies, mention is often made of youth unemployment, economic problems or the propensity of young traders not to fulfill their tax obligations, hence their refusal to formalize their businesses. Although many of these studies have been qualitatively conducted through observation and/or interviews, others, admittedly less well known, have attempted to give a quantitative answer to the characteristics of poverty, violence and informality often attributed to street vending. However, our study has chosen to make an in-depth immersion in Senegal’s informal economy in order to give the chance to street vendors to recount their individual stories. Through observations and interviews, we managed to record the individual and often emotional stories of 350 street vendors who accepted to reveal their main motivations in storming Dakar’s main markets. As a result, we not only have discovered that most vendors’ presence on the street is culturally motivated, but that they also contribute directly to the overall level of economic activity and provision of goods and services. They are an integral part of the economy, and their elimination would inevitably sever the cultural bonds within households and the social solidarity that underpin Senegalese society.

Authors:
Fafa Sene, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan
Houleymata Dite Dianga Ba Ndongo, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Senegal
Ousmane Cisse, Cheikh Anta Diop University, Senegal
Oulimata Diop, MERK LAB, Senegal
Alioune Wade, Ministry of Urban Planning and Local Communities, Senegal

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Fafa SENE is currently a postdoctoral researcher at Tokyo University of Foreign Studies and serves, at the same time, as a Technical advisor to Senegal's Minister of Urban Planning and Local Communities.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/fafa-sene-265124271/

See this presentation on the full schedule – Sunday Schedule

Bookmark