Roadside vendors operating near the CMB Market in Accra have been ordered by the Korle Klottey Municipal Assembly (KoKMA) and the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) to move behind designated demarcation lines and stop trading on major roads until January 31, 2026.
They have also warned that enforcement actions will start early on February 1.
The directive came after a meeting with the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) and the Container Owners Association at the CMB Market on Monday. The meeting was called in response to the traders’ request for more time to regularise their operations and support measures, such as organised trader groups, the appointment of designated leaders, and better waste collection arrangements like the provision of trash containers.
Speaking to the traders, Hon. Michael Kpakpo Allotey, the mayor of Accra, emphasised that women’s contributions were crucial to the city’s development and urged market women and traders to work together with municipal officials to make the capital secure, clean, and orderly.
After increased street commerce during the Christmas season, he called for cooperation to enhance sanitation, facilitate pedestrian mobility, and restore vehicular access in the region.
He stated that preventing accidents and disease outbreaks while making sure traders made enough money to maintain their families was the government’s top concern.
He noted that financial difficulties and the inability to pay for store space were frequently the driving forces for street dealing. He also mentioned that ongoing market and shop initiatives were being developed with affordability in mind, with possibilities he said could be as low as GH¢500 for some areas.
According to Hon. Allotey, authorities had originally planned to relocate vendors by the middle of the month, but they decided to extend the deadline after learning that many vendors still had unsold merchandise from the holiday season.
He stated that demarcation lines would be redrawn to show where trading might occur and that traders would have a full month, until the end of January, to finish sales and get ready to leave the streets.
He said that the city would implement more precise organisational measures in the coming weeks, such as designating areas for vendors to operate behind designated lines and, on some days, closing particular streets to permit restricted selling, as was done during the Yuletide.
In response to worries expressed regarding purported land sales in the region, the mayor emphasised that no land could be sold without the necessary approvals from his office and reassured traders that the government would not allow any illegal property transactions.
Additionally, he urged harmony and serenity, stressing that cooperation between authorities and traders was necessary to create a cleaner and safer Accra.
Hon. Alfred Allotey-Gaisie, the Municipal Chief Executive for KoKMA, stated that his Assembly had noticed a resurgence of roadside sales in defiance of previous orders, pointing out that the situation was impeding traffic for both cars and pedestrians.
He stated that faded boundary markings will be repainted to direct compliance and that enforcement inspections would start at three in the morning on February 1.
Hon. Gaisie also advised traders to refrain from conduct that would result in the confiscation of products and warned that infractions could result in prosecution at the sanitary court, with offenders subject to fines or jail time.
Diana Nyokopa Daniels, the leader of the Container Owners Association, stated that the organisation acknowledged that the spike in roadside sales during the Christmas season had contributed to traffic jams and that, now that the celebrations were over, vendors needed to go back to their designated spots.
Source: newsthemegh.com