By Noko Mashilo
The streets of Johannesburg are set to become a stage for resistance as informal traders, Johannesburg Informal Traders Development Powerhouse, and Johannesburg Well of Development and Training rise against what they describe as relentless harassment, unlawful displacement, and systemic neglect in the Inner-City Improvement District. For many legally operating traders, the city has become a daily battleground where livelihoods are threatened, trading spaces are erased, and permits are delayed indefinitely.
On 19 February 2026 at 09:00, informal traders will march from Library Gardens Square to Braam Park, demanding an end to intimidation and the restoration of their right to work with dignity. At the centre of their grievances are urgent calls for the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) to immediately stop harassing traders, halt what they term illegal and criminal displacement practices, fast-track permit issuance, and properly demarcate trading stands.
Supporters have been encouraged to wear black during the march, symbolising solidarity with traders whose livelihoods are under threat and families whose survival depends on the informal economy.
Mmeshi Marokane, general secretary of JOWEDET said as the leaders of informal traders operating in the inner city within the Improvement District, hereby lodge a formal petition against the continued ill-treatment and harassment of legally operating informal traders,” the leadership said.
He further said their members have traded in designated spaces allocated by the City for years. “However, they are now being removed without prior notice, consultation, or any alternative arrangements, despite there being new city plans that seek to change trading areas,” said Marokane.
According to Lulama Mali, President of JOWEDET, the traders are not resisting regulation but demanding fairness and a lawful process. “It is our understanding that trading spaces are regulated in terms of the Business Act, Section 71 of 1991, read together with the City of Johannesburg Informal Trading By-laws of 2012. Our approach is to seek collaboration and cooperation with the City in clarifying designated trading areas in line with the City of Johannesburg Informal Trading Policy,” she said.
She also stressed that the law recognises and protects the informal economy. “The legislation enables the existence of informal businesses and empowers local authorities to develop municipal informal trading by-laws, including restricted and prohibited trading zones. It also makes provision for the creation of business licences for informal economy activities and protects the rights of informal traders in fulfilment of constitutional obligations to the sector,” said Mali.
The leadership accused the city, working with the JMPD, of conducting removals without alternatives. “They said their members trading on designated stands along Eloff Street and Von Brandis Street, including Eloff Street between Plein Street and Jeppe Street, have been displaced with no alternative trading spaces provided. “This is happening while the city claims it is ‘re-allocating trading spaces. For us, this is not just administration; it is our livelihoods being destroyed,” said Mali.
Marokane said the law clearly provides for local authorities to declare certain business and residential precincts as restricted or prohibited for trading, except in properly demarcated locations. “Research has consistently shown that this legislation both enables informal trading and regulates it in specific areas, yet what we are seeing on the ground is disorder, confusion and selective enforcement,” said Marokane.
He added that they called for urgent leadership to restore order and dignity in the city. “Immediate action and decisive leadership are needed to restore Johannesburg to its world-class status. This includes clarity and consistency in how the informal trading sector is managed. Trading areas must be designated in line with the Business Act of 1991, read together with the City of Johannesburg Informal Trading By-laws of 2012,” said Marokane.
The traders emphasised that the law already gives the City sufficient powers to act fairly and lawfully. “The Business Act No. 71 of 1991 sets out clear parameters and powers for local authorities to regulate informal trading through by-laws, the issuing of business licences, and the designation of spaces for street trading. There is no legal vacuum; there is a leadership vacuum,” they said.
They warned that the treatment of traders has crossed a moral line. “We can no longer tolerate a city where informal traders are harassed and chased away like animals from the streets, after trading legally in designated spaces for more than 30 years,” the leadership said.
“By-laws are not enforced consistently, breeding a culture of lawlessness. We have written several emails requesting meetings with City leadership, with no success. Enough is enough.”
The traders demanded urgent intervention from political and administrative leadership.
“We demand that the Mayor of Johannesburg, Dada Morero, and the City Manager, Floyd Brink, take immediate action,” they said.
Their demands include:
“Proper consultation with informal traders’ leadership, particularly block leaders and their affiliated representatives, to discuss the City’s approach to informal trading as reflected in official statements.”
“Priority re-demarcation of formally council-approved trading spaces, in line with the layout map approved by Council in 2016 and aligned with the City’s informal trading by-laws.”
“Fast-tracking the issuing of new informal trading permits to legal traders operating in designated trading spaces.”
“Clear communication of the City’s plans, street by street and block by block, with all affected traders operating in Improvement Districts who are registered on formal lists.”
“Johannesburg is at a breaking point,” the leadership warned. “Neglect of the city’s infrastructure and governance will lead to irreversible collapse. The residents of Johannesburg deserve better, and so do the informal traders who keep this city alive every day.
The City’s Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) for Economic Development, Councillor Nomoya Mnisi, said the city has been consistent in enforcing by-laws in the inner city, a process that has naturally drawn mixed reactions from different stakeholders.
“The past four months have demonstrated the City of Johannesburg’s commitment to improving and better managing informal trading through the verification of traders and the issuing of permits. We have proven beyond a reasonable doubt that a well-governed city has the potential to bring about positive change and stability, creating a safer, cleaner environment and restoring investor confidence,” said Mnisi.
She added that her department was “unimpressed” by the planned march, noting that despite ongoing law enforcement by the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department and the demarcation of trading spaces, “there are other interested parties who appear to thrive on disorder. These parties continue to exploit the situation by sowing confusion and division among traders.”
