Abstract:
The main objective of this study is to investigate causes and consequences of street vending in the
study area. This study is located in Eastern Hararghe Zone, Chinaksen town. The research design
used in this study was Cross-sectional survey design and random sampling technique was used to
take sample street vendors and government officials. For this, study, randomly selected a sample
size of 326 respondents of the street vendor participants from a population of 1770 by considering
probability proportional to size and 7 respondents were taken by censes from 7 government
officials. Instruments that used to collect primary data were focus group discussion, key informant
interview, personal observation, and questionnaires. The data were analyzed using descriptive
statistical techniques like, mean, frequency, percentages, and standard deviation. The findings
show that that the major causes of street vending activities were rural-urban migration, to gain
more profit, lack of job in the formal sector and poverty. Fruits and vegetables, Chat, ceria
product, and selbaj were the major commodities of street vendors in Chinaksen town. The result
from ordinal logistic regression showed that length of working hour, age, education status , initial
capital, was statistically significant The estimated odds ratio (OR = 4.32, P =.003), (OR = 8.91,
P=.002), (OR=28.5, P=.004) (OR = 29.1, P=.000 ) times more likely to be in high income levels
compared respectively. Even though, vending activity serves as employment and means of
livelihood for a considerable number of households, it causes problems like traffic congestion,
narrowing of pedestrian path, Environmental pollution and reduces the revenue of the
municipality, etc. The study also found alternative measures to minimize negative impacts of street
vending such as collecting and keeping wastes in municipal provided container, setting vending
zone, demarcating pedestrian movement. The study concluded that through registering street
vendors’ municipality would provide supports like loan to upgrade street vendors in to legal shop
and this would increases the revenue of local government to develop basic infrastructure for both
vendors as well as the whole residents of town.
