Survival of The Urban Poor by The Open-Air Market at Gaba Landing Site in Kampala Environs

ABSTRACT This study investigated the survival of the urban poor by the open-air market at Gaba landing site in Kampala environs. This was after the realisation that liberalisation and the rapid urbanisation of Kampala City have left tens of thousands of the city residents in squalid conditions where abject and absolute poverty rule. The study specifically sought to achieve the following objectives: to establish the genesis of the open-air market at Gaba landing site; to examine the role of the open-air market in the socio-econornic transformation of Gaba landing site; and to find out the problems faced by the open-air market at Gaba landing site. To achieve the stated objectives, the study was guided by the following research questions: what is the genesis of the open-air market at Gaba landing site? What role does the open-air market play in the socio economic transformation of Gaba landing site? ‘What problems do the open-air market at Gaba landing site face? The study design took the form of a case study of the survival of the urban poor by the open-air market at Gaba landing site of Kampala environs. The study also involved purposive sampling in which the data sought were qualitative. A sample of 40 respondents was purposively sampled for the study. These included 15 traders, five local leaders, five opinion leaders, and 15 buyers. The data were collected using interviews and observations for primary data and documents analysis for secondary data. The data were analysed qualitatively through the literal description and narrations of the emerging issues out of which opinions and conclusions were authentically drawn. The study established that the growth of the open-air market at Gaba landing site is based on a multiple of factors that included transport networks, community initiative, growth pole centre (trading centre), poverty and unemployment, and the informalisation of the economy among others. The study also revealed that the open-air market was among the largest employers at Gaba landing site. Further, the open-air market was also found to be a source of revenue, tool for poverty reduction, market for services, industrial and agricultural products and source of empowerment for the less privileged, disabled, youths and women. The study has also shown that high market dues, inadequate capital, weather vagaries, inadequate sanitation and hygiene, ix and inadequate facilities are the major problems faced by the open-air market at Gaba landing site. The study recommends that the city planners and economic policy makers should consider openair markets as one of the city realities and work out a modality for controlling and regulating this trade given the fact that the economy is not expanding fast enough to create opportunities for the disabled, youths, women, and the less privileged. The study also recommends the need for empowerment projects for the disabled, youths and women that do not require huge sums of initial capital. Resources from NGOs, financial institutions and the government can be channelled to the disabled, youths, and women associations. This will enable the disabled, youths and women to embark on activities outside the open-air markets. Further, the study recommends a fair taxation, which is not exploitative to petty traders and a fund where petty traders can access credit at a low interest rate as weil as training them in skills of small-scale business and financial management. The study concludes by noting that open-air markets were a reflection of a multiple of socio economic problems in society e.g., destitution, poverty, rapid urbanisation, unemployment, informalisation of the economy and failure to expand the formal sector. As a result, communities have taken their own initiatives to survive so as alleviate poverty and destitution, and to create employment. Further, open-air markets will continue to face problems such as inadequate capital, insecurity of land tenure, weather vagaries, witchcraft, inadequate facilities, and unfair market dues among others. This will continue not until the leaders appreciate the role played by the informal sector in the transformation of our society more so after the withdrawal of the government as the major employer and provider following the introduction of SAPs in the late 1980s and early 1990s.