Zimpeto wholesale market temporarily closed – photos

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Zimpeto wholesale market temporarily closed – photos

1:26 CAT | 22 Jun 2020

All photos: Miramar

Rubble, destroyed stalls and a huge unoccupied space are the unimaginable scenario characterising Zimpeto wholesale market this Monday. What is usually a busy morning melee of salespeople and consumers has given way to silence.

Zimpeto market, as part of Maputo municipal authorities well-heralded market disinfection and reorganisation programme, is temporarily closed for commercial activities.

The Local Economic Development council assured Miramar’s reporter that it would restore the former functioning of the wholesale market, while admitting the possibility that some vendors might be relocated to existing formal retail markets.

But vendors rue the stoppage. “It won’t be easy, three days at a standstill. That means a lot to us, because we sell to eat on a day-by-day basis,” Marta Chaculia said.

Most sellers were unable to run down their stocks completely, despite the few days’ grace given by Maputo City Council.

The fear is that produce will spoil. “A truck of goods had just arrived, but there is no way to sell the product, so they are just stored,” one irritated vendor comments, while conceding that the cleaning and reorganisation of the market is long overdue.

The retail market attached to the wholesale market is also temporarily closed. It has 2500 sellers, ‘O País’ reports.

According to O País’, as a result of the closure of Zimpeto, the bus terminal was also temporarily closed because it was feared that informal people would take over this space. The location for provisionally operating the terminal has been identified. There are no conditions created for users on site. There is no water, no shade, no public toilets, and no seats to sit on while waiting for transportation.