BY MUNYARADZI BLESSING DOMA
Illegal vendors operating from undesignated sites in Harare and other parts of the Harare Metropolitan Province have been given until September 9, 2026 to vacate the streets or risk having their structures and trading sites dismantled in a Government-led clean-up operation.
The directive was issued by the Minister of Local Government and Public Works, Daniel Garwe on Wednesday, September 2, who described the deadline as a stern and final warning to informal traders operating outside legally designated marketplaces.
According to Minister Garwe, the Government will commence a comprehensive, zero-tolerance clean-up operation on Wednesday, September 9, targeting illegal vending sites across Harare and the broader Harare Metropolitan Province.
“All vendors engaging in illegal street and night trading have until Wednesday, September 9, 2026, to immediately vacate these unauthorised sites and relocate to lawful, designated vending markets provided by the local authority,” Minister Garwe said.
He said the proliferation of illegal vending in the capital’s Central Business District (CBD) and other areas had contributed to deteriorating urban sanitation, blocked public pathways and created congestion, while also disrupting formal businesses operating within the law.
Minister Garwe said while Government recognised informal trading as an important source of livelihoods, such activities had to be conducted within municipal by-laws and at legally designated marketplaces.
“The current state of disorderliness on the streets is not tolerable,” Garwe said, as he warned that illegal vending had also created conditions that could contribute to drug and substance abuse and other social ills.
He added that from September 9, the Ministry, together with other Government ministries, departments and agencies, will begin dismantling illegal vending structures, stalls and sites.
And he revealed thay Municipal Police will also remain deployed in cleared areas to prevent vendors from returning to the streets.
Minster Garwe said the operation will subsequently be rolled out to other cities, towns and urban settlements across the country as Government moves to restore order, cleanliness and trafficability in urban areas.
He also urged informal traders to use the remaining window before the deadline to voluntarily relocate to designated markets and avoid losing their merchandise during the clean-up operation.
Local authorities have meanwhile been directed to facilitate the immediate registration and orderly placement of compliant informal traders into designated structures.
The Government says the operation is part of efforts to create a sustainable, orderly, clean and safe environment in line with the country’s National Development Strategy 2 and Vision 2030 aspirations.
