Source: Govt moves to restore order at Glen View Complex – herald
Herald Reporter
GOVERNMENT has moved to restore order at Glen View Area 8 Furniture Complex following yet another fire that destroyed more than 483 stalls over the weekend, amid growing concern over alleged sabotage, corruption and the activities of space barons at the informal trading hub.
Deputy Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Cde Kiven Mutimbanyoka, on Tuesday, toured the complex, met with traders and assessed the extent of the destruction.
Addressing traders during the tour, Deputy Minister Mutimbanyoka said the Government would take decisive measures to restore sanity and ensure that genuine traders operated in a safe, organised and conducive environment.
“The issue of recurring fires at the Glen View Furniture Complex requires a multi-faceted approach and, as Government, we are going to work closely with other ministries to ensure that we construct proper workspaces where business can be conducted without any hindrances,” he said.
“We are also going to engage other investors to come on board and help develop this place.”
The Glen View Area 8 Home Industry Complex is one of Zimbabwe’s largest informal furniture manufacturing centres and supports hundreds of small-scale entrepreneurs and artisans.
During engagements with the Deputy Minister, traders raised concerns over intimidation, corruption, weak leadership structures and lack of accountability within the complex, while some accused rival committees of creating divisions among operators.
Deputy Minister Mutimbanyoka said the Government would not tolerate the continued exploitation of traders by land and space barons allegedly benefiting from the disorder at the complex.
“There is no need for space barons to take charge of this particular space. We’ve got enough mechanisms as the Government to make sure that, at the end of the day, this space is given to the right people who are deserving, our people who are trading in this space,” he said.
“We want our people to work in a very normal, harmonious environment and they must trade without any challenges. We cannot allow space barons to take charge of this space.”
He warned individuals accused of illegally controlling workspaces that the Government was prepared to intervene directly if authorities failed to act.
“This space belongs to the City of Harare and if it fails to rein in the space barons, as the Government, we are going to come and rein them in,” he said.
“We will make sure that our people are given back the dignity that they so deserve, such that they can work without any unnecessary challenges.”
He said the Government was determined to shield traders from intimidation and criminal activities threatening productivity within the informal sector.
“We are going to support our people this time around. We know what they have been doing and how much they have been contributing to the development discourse of this country and it is our responsibility as Government to support them and protect them,” he said.
The Deputy Minister also stressed the importance of cleanliness, order and proper organisation at the complex as part of broader efforts to improve the working environment for micro, small and medium enterprises.
Officials from the Ministry indicated that a fact-finding team would soon return to Glen View to further investigate the concerns raised by traders and recommend long-term corrective measures aimed at restoring stability at the complex.
After touring Glen View Area 8, Deputy Minister Mutimbanyoka, accompanied by Small and Medium Enterprises Development Corporation (SMEDCO) chief executive Mr Obert Ngwenya, proceeded to Gazaland in Highfield, where they toured a SMEDCO workspace project nearing completion.
The delegation later visited another SMEDCO workspace development project in Harare’s central business district, which is expected to accommodate 32 stalls once completed.
COMMENTS