Bulawayo City Council has moved to address a five-year-old anomaly affecting traders living with disabilities by recommending the construction of 14 additional trading bays along Sixth Avenue Extension for those who were left without operating space following the relocation of businesses from Egodini Terminus in 2021.
The proposal seeks to provide licensed traders with disabilities a permanent place to conduct business after they were inadvertently excluded during the relocation exercise triggered by the redevelopment of the city’s main transport hub.
According to a report presented by the director of the council town, land and planning department on June 10, 2026, the additional bays will be established at a site adjacent to OK Zimbabwe supermarket along Sixth Avenue Extension.
“This report sought to request for additional trading bays/stalls for licensed members who were left behind during the relocation exercise from Egodini Terminus in 2021,” the report stated.
The report traces the problem back to the temporary closure of Egodini for redevelopment, which forced the relocation of various informal traders operating at the terminus.
Council said persons living with disabilities, who were members of the National Council of Disabled Persons of Zimbabwe (NCDPZ), were among those affected by the exercise.
“Thirty-five trading sites were allocated to people living with disabilities at site six (Lobengula Street Mall), while 13 traders were allocated at the 5th Avenue site,” the report noted.
However, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted trading activities within the central business district, creating further challenges for traders who had already been displaced by the redevelopment project.
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When business activities resumed in 2021, some traders with disabilities were allocated operating spaces along Sixth Avenue Extension, but not everyone benefited.
“At the resumption of business activities in 2021 after the pandemic, some of the persons with disabilities were then allocated spaces along Sixth Avenue Extension, but 14 were left behind,” the report said.
To rectify the situation, council proposed the development of 14 additional bays at the same location where other traders with disabilities had already been relocated.
The proposed bays are expected to provide trading space for the remaining licensed traders who missed out during the initial allocation process, helping to ensure that no trader is excluded from the city’s informal trading framework.
“That the proposed additional bays as depicted on plan TPC 286E be approved, to facilitate allocation to formerly licensed traders (persons living with disabilities) who were left behind during the reallocation in 2021,” the council resolution reads.
