Thailand's capital to relocate street vendors

Bangkok plans to relocate street vendors in a project inspired by Singapore's success in addressing the problems of overcrowded street vendors.

For decades, vendors have occupied the sidewalks of Bangkok.

Proponents of the practice have always argued that street vending is one of the city's main tourist attractions, helps stimulate the local economy, contributes to the city's vibrant social and cultural scene, and offers a wide range of food and merchandise at affordable prices.

Opponents of the practice, however, say roadside vendors are not required to pay taxes and that many of them do not respect hygiene and health rules and obstruct traffic.

The steady increase in the number of street vendors has prompted the city hall to take steps to regulate them, but many street vendors ignore this and continue to occupy the sidewalks.

Some city officials have also been accused of receiving bribes from vendors in exchange for allowing them to sell their wares on sidewalks.

According to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), in 2011 there were a total of 773 locations where sidewalk trading was temporarily permitted.

This number was reduced to 171 after the government worked with the previous Bangkok governor, Aswin Kwanmuang, to regulate street vending.

The new governor's policy

View of Bangkok

When Chadchart Sittipunt took office as Bangkok's governor about two months ago, he promised to crack down on unregulated sidewalk vending, modeled on Singapore's management of hawker centers.

He tasked a team of advisors with finding the best solution.

Kessara Thanyalakpark, senior advisor to the governor on strategy and finance, said Singapore's establishment of special centers where street vendors can sell their wares is the ideal model for regulating street vending in Bangkok.

Tackling unregulated street vending is one of the Bangkok governor's 216 policies aimed at solving Bangkok's problems and making the capital a more livable city, Ms. Kessara said.

She added that hawker centers are part of Singapore's street vendor culture, which was recognized as an intangible cultural heritage object by UNESCO on December 16, 2020.

"Other countries may be trying to tackle this problem in the same way as Singapore.

But instead of calling them 'hawker centers,' they can use other terms, like 'food courts' or 'street food,'" Kessara said.

She added that the team would define a set of criteria for locations where off-street premises would be built for relocated vendors.

Criteria will also be defined to determine which vendors are qualified to sell products in the new premises.

These criteria should be finalized by the end of the year, she said.

“The sites can be located in public areas or vacant areas owned by state agencies, or areas owned by private companies that are interested in the project.

“The premises should be located on the roadsides, or slightly deeper into the alleys.

They should not be far from the original locations occupied by the sellers.

There should also be enough customers in these areas to patronize them.

“Furthermore, locations must be easy to regulate,” she added.

The city hall's Thessaloniki inspectors in all 50 district offices of the capital were tasked with searching for such locations.

Initially, more than 100 locations were deemed suitable, Ms. Kessara said.

"Once the selection criteria are finalized, City Hall will meet with the sellers and landowners for further discussions," she said.

“We have thought of some provisional criteria.

For example, salespeople will not need to earn more than 360,000 baht per year or around 30,000 baht per month to be eligible.

They would also be required to follow cleanliness rules,” she added.

But if demand from vendors exceeds the availability of retail space, lottery draws may be held to decide who gets it, she added.

“These measures are only temporary.

We still need some time for further study to ensure that genuine sellers are getting spaces, and not designated individuals acting on behalf of others,” she said.

Ms. Kessara said discussions will also be held with banks and financial institutions to ensure that vendors have access to loans to run their businesses.

"Many sellers are known to borrow money from loan sharks, which places heavy financial burdens on them," she said, referring to high interest rates.

"The city hall's version of hawker centers is not a state welfare program.

The project aims only to provide vendors with sustainable employment and charge them fair rent.

The goods will also be sold at affordable prices,” she said.

“The success of this project will be judged on the vendors’ adherence to cleanliness and order, its contribution to the city’s charm, its ability to provide sustainable livelihoods for vendors, and the availability of affordable food,” added Ms. Kessara.

A project welcomed

Sungsidh Piriyarangsan, chairman of the Senate Committee on Combating Poverty and Disparities, supports the project.

Off-street premises should be provided for vendors to sell their products and the rent should be fair, he said.

Vendors displaced from their former locations should be the first to benefit from rights, he added.

"City Hall should view this issue as a key strategy for the city's development, not just a short-term plan to provide jobs and generate income for the poor.

"In addition, the project will strengthen the country's attractiveness to foreign visitors.

As we all know, Bangkok's street food is famous all over the world," he said.

Mr. Sungsidh said the city hall must invest in providing spaces suitable for the needs of street vendors and customers, while ensuring order, cleanliness and hygiene.

“An online application should also be designed to support the vendors’ business and measures must be put in place to protect them from some officials who demand bribes,” Mr. Sungsidh said.

According to him, some foreign migrants also get involved in the street food trade because they are willing to pay higher bribes to officials in exchange for selling their products.

"If Thai sellers are registered on such an app, this problem will not occur," Mr. Sungsidh said.

A street vendor named "Jiab" on Khao San Road said that while she welcomed the project, she was not sure it could become a reality.

Efforts have been made to regulate street vending for a long time, but little has been achieved, she said.

“City officials rarely come to meet the vendors and listen to what they have to say.

They tend to listen to their subordinates, some of whom have special interests,” the saleswoman said.

“Officials from district offices will be sent to register the vendors, while city hall officials will see nothing for themselves.

"So, vendors who have no right to occupy commercial premises are registered instead.

Some foreign migrants who befriend officials are also allowed to sell,” she says.

"I want the new governor to come and meet the vendors in person, and not just listen to the officials," she added.

Waiwit Tongthongkham, a 40-year-old bank employee on Srinakarin Road, said meals are becoming more expensive as the prices of ingredients and energy continue to rise.

Cooked-to-order food is now sold for 60-70 baht per dish while a bowl of noodles costs 40-45 baht.

The project should be able to meet the needs of office workers like us,” he said.

Source: Bangkok Post