SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONDITION OF VEGETABLE STREET VENDORS : A STUDY ON DHAKA CITY

Abstract

The study focuses on the socio-economic condition of vegetable Street vendors in Dhaka. Special emphasis has been given on reasons of entering women vegetable vendors into vending job and their problem. For this purpose, a survey was conducted in 2018 to know the socio-economic condition of vegetable street vendors in Dhaka. This survey covered 150 vendors in those streets, footpath and roadside of 5 specific areas as Mirpur, Mohammadpur, Farmgate, Dhanmondi and Azimpur in Dhaka. Based on this study has found that the socio-economic condition of street vendors is very poor. Their income and saving is very low. Both they and their children’s education is very poor. Vegetable street vendor is one of the better informal job opportunities for poor. The study explores that 88.67 percent vegetable vendors are male and 11.34 percent of them are female. 42 percent of them have age range 26-35 years old. Among them 74 percent got married. 52 percent of them maintaining a family member at least 6 or above. Almost 65.34 percent vendor’s academic qualification is below SSC. More than 24 percent of them and 12 percent of their children are illiterate yet. The per day average sale is Tk. 2475. The average monthly income of per vendor is Tk. 23435. Almost 61.34 percent had started with an initial investment lowest Tk.10000. 50.67 percent of them could earn profit per day lowest through Tk. 400. If a comparison is made between male and female, we see that the condition of women vendors is more vulnerable than male venders. Women vendors in Dhaka choose this trade because of poverty and also because the male members in the family do not have jobs and even if they earn money, they spend those money mostly on liquor. Their low income, double burden of having to work on the streets and look after the home and low level of unionization make them the invisible section of street vendors. Less or no Public toilet in the streets of Dhaka has an adverse effect on women vender’s health and many suffer from various infection. The mobile women street vendors also face security issues.