Scotland Chikwawa Health Initiative Food Markets Baseline Report

Transcription

1 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Environmental Health Scotland Chikwawa Health Initiative Food Markets Baseline Report Tracy Morse Dembo and Mfera Markets Scottish Government Funded Grant Number MW22 ( ) 0

2 This baseline study targeted Dembo market and Mfera vending site in Chikwawa district which are being earmarked for model health food markets. Situation analysis involved interviews with the Veterinary department, the District Environmental health Office, focus group discussions with market committee and vendors plying their trade at the markets, observation of market structures and sale of various products at the markets. Low levels of market hygiene, poor waste management, lack of trainings on food hygiene, dilapidated or lacking sanitary facilities, and poor working relationship among the stakeholders are some of the findings that are highlighted in this report. 1

3 Contents Introduction... 3 Methodology... 4 Findings... 5 The Veterinary Department... 5 District Environmental Health Office... 6 Dembo Market... 7 Mfera Market Recommendations Appendix A: Sketch Map of Dembo Market Appendix B: Sketch Map of Mfera Vending Site Appendix C: Focus Group Discussion Guide

4 Introduction Healthy Food Markets is an initiative being promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO) to ensure access to health and nutritious food. The concept applies a multidisciplinary approach in which all stakeholders collaborate to provide safe and nutritious food to the community. There is evidence that food markets plays a major role as channels for spread of food borne diseases. To date the concept of Health Food Markets has been applied globally. In Africa five pilot health food markets have been established in five countries namely, Mozambique, Tanzania, Congo, Nigeria and Egypt. In Malawi it is estimated that 8800 Malawians, including 4500 under five children die each year due to diarrhea (water and sanitation programe.org). The Malawi Demographic and Health Survey, (2004) identifies diarrhea as one of the leading cause of mortality among children in Malawi. Such diseases have meaningful economic impacts on the lives of individuals. The water and sanitation project estimates that about eight billion kwacha is lost each year due to poor sanitation. In all cases diarrhea is associated with use of contaminated water, contaminated food and poor excreta and poor waste management. Most markets in Malawi lack basic amenities for health as such the likelihood of food contamination is very high. Whilst most food and water contamination intervention programs are focusing on the home, contamination can essentially happen anywhere along the food chain and markets are very vital for intervention programs. Since Malawi does not have a pilot health market, establishing one will be essential in promoting consumption of safe food at the same time the concept can be modelled to other food markets in Malawi. This project therefore seeks to improve two markets in Chikhwawa district as pilot health food markets by applying the WHO concept of Health Markets. The project is part of an ongoing health project (Scotland- Chikhwawa Health Initiative) funded by the Scottish Government and is being implemented by the Malawi Polytechnic in partnership with Chikhwawa District Health Office. Data from the Chikhwawa District Environmental Health Office indicates that the district has approximately 30 registered markets. Mitondo is the largest market out of the registered markets. Dembo and Mfera Markets though on the Environmental Health Office s register, are not necessarily considered as fully established markets for the reason that they do not have proper selling sheds, despite the large population of people that are serviced by the Markets. 3

5 Methodology This baseline study focused on market hygiene for Dembo and Mfera markets in Chikhwawa district which are being targeted for the project. Infrastructure, facilities and food handling practices at the market were studied by observations and focus group discussions (FGDs). Furthermore, a questionnaire was used to interview the Veterinary Department and the District Environmental Health Office (DEHO) were to assess the level of hygiene in the markets with respect to what the offices have been mandated to do in markets. At the veterinary office the researcher spoke to Mr. P. Begi (District Animal and Livestock Development Officer), while Mr. P. Ngondo an Environmental Health Officer was interviewed for the DEHO. The District Assembly was also targeted but they directed the researcher to the DEHO. For Dembo market, five FGDs were conducted involving the market committee, male and female non food vendors, male and female food vendors, general vendors ( food and non- food) males only, general vendors (food and non- food) females only. Mfera market did not have a functional market committee as such the FGDs for market committee was not conducted; all the other FGDs were conducted as done at Dembo. For the market committee the FGDs members were members of the committee. Other FGDS members were drawn randomly from within the market vendors. The focus group discussions explored on market administration, general market environment, food hygiene knowledge, relationship with stake holders among others. The focus group discussion guide is attached appendix C. 4

6 Findings This section discusses key findings from the Veterinary Department, the District Environmental Health Office, Dembo and Mfera markets. The Veterinary Department The veterinary department is responsible for animal health and monitoring of sale of meat and meat products. In Chikhwawa district, the office has Animal Health Surveillance Assistants (AHSA) responsible for surveillance of animal health in the villages. Furthermore, the AHSA is also responsible for antmortem and postmortem inspection of animals. The AHSA reports to the Assistant Veterinary Officers who are responsible for Inspection of animals at the markets. The Veterinary Department has established a working relationship with farmers such that Lead farmers (Paravets) have been trained to train and monitor other farmers in animal health. Their effort is to ensure that the market is provided with health or disease free animals. Despite the Veterinary office providing the inspection services, their efforts are set back by lack of proper structures to facilitate hygiene in the markets. The office reported that most markets lack facilities such as raised slab for handling animal carcass, host rails and disposal pits for condemned animal products. The office recommended that it was necessary that each market should have at least one raised slab for handling and cleaning of carcass, disposal pit to contain trimmings and wash water and one disposal pit 50m deep to contain condemned carcass. Construction of these facilities is considered a responsibility of the District Assembly. In addition, the office reported lack of coordination between the veterinary office and the DEHO which is also involved in meat inspection and market hygiene and the District Assembly responsible for provision of facilities to facilitate hygiene at the markets. This lack of cooperation is giving opportunity for uninspected animals to be sold at the markets. Poor relationship with the market committees and vendors was also noted as one of the major setbacks. The office has no record of market committees or records of butcher men and meat vendors. The office however, agreed that there is need to have a good working relationship with the vendors and market committees to ensure that animal inspection is carried out efficiently. Should the market committees be involved, they could also be responsible to ensure that uninspected animals and meat products are not sold in the markets by cooperating with the Veterinary department and monitoring of fellow vendors. 5

7 On training targeting market committees or vendors, the office could not recall the last time such training was conducted. Poor government funding was identified as the reason for lack of trainings. The office however indicated interest to train vendors and market committees on animal disease and sanitation. The office also identified vending of roasted meat (Chiwaya) along the Blantyre Chikhwawa road in unestablished markets as their major concern. Monitoring of such activity was identified as the main problem. It was noted that such type of meat is likely sold before inspection and with minimum hygienic standards. The office suggested that such a practice can be contained by working with village headmen to ensure that each seller is given permission to sell only when they have an inspection certificate. District Environmental Health Office The District Environmental Health Office is responsible for inspection of markets hygiene, toilets, waste disposal, health education and inspection of food commodities such as inspection of iodine in salts. The markets are inspected by HSA s and Assistant Environmental Health Officers. The office reported that the last case of food related outbreak was cholera between rainy seasons. Three hundred and sixty one cases were reported of which 6 deaths occurred some of the cases reported were from Mfera. The last formal training for the markets was in 2002 and was targeting sale of iodised salts. In addition, in recent years about two years ago, there have been some sensitization campaigns at the markets a dressing cholera through funding from the Development Aid from People to People (DAPP). The District Environmental Health office plans training of market committees every year which are not fulfilled due to poor funding from the government. The office pointed out lack of facilities at the market as another challenge thwarting their efforts to ensure hygiene at the markets. Market data collected by the office in 2013 indicates that 16 toilets are available for 27 markets and two of those markets were full. All the markets inspected had no urinals. Most of the markets had no refuse pits and those available were sometimes full. The office indicated that some markets are operating at very low standards worthy of closing down but the office is reluctant to do so considering the resultant economic impact the community would suffer. 6

8 Dembo Market Dembo market serves people from different Traditional Authorities, some of them are from Maseya, Kasisi, Katunga and Makhuwira in Chikwawa and Somba and Thomas in Blantyre and Thyolo districts respectively. The market is operates daily but Wednesdays and Sundays are established market days. The market has a committee comprising of a chairman and his vice, secretary and his vice, treasurer and five committee members. The assembly and the village headman took part in the selection of the committee. The committee is responsible for market administration, settling disputes, allocating places of sale and general staff welfare for example it arranges assistance for sick or bereaved vendors. Estimated number of traders The committee doesn t have a record of registered vendors. However, data collected on market day of 10 th September, 2014 estimated about 211 vendors. Trader / Vendor category Meat products ( goat and pigs) Ready to eat vended food Fish Nonfood (Clothing, hardware, kitchenware) Fruits and vegetables Estimated number Focus group turn outs Focus group discussion for Dembo market was done on two separate dates, 18th July, 2014 and on 24th July, 2014 for the market committee and for the other groups respectively. For the market committee ten members turned up for the discussion. This discussion had the chairman (male) and his vice (female), Secretary (male) and his vice (male), treasurer (male) and five committee members (two females and three males). This group had grocery owners, vendors for ready to eat vended foods and vegetable vendors. For mixed male and female food vendors, nine (9) people turned up comprising four women and five men. The group had butcher man vendors of ready to eat vended foods and vegetable vendors. 7

9 For mixed male and female nonfood vendors, eight (8) people turned up for the discussion. In this group there were four males and four females. This group had hardware owners, bicycle transporters, maize mill operators. Focus group discussion for General vendors males only and General vendors females only had 8 and 7 participants respectively. Market lay out The market has several sections, fish section, meat section, ready to eat foods, vegetable, clothing and groceries. Allocation of place of sale for those intending to build a structure is the responsibility of the committee in liaison with the village headman. A suitable place is identified and allocated with respect to the type of product the vendor intends to sale. Other vendors who do not need a permanent structure allocate themselves place to a section with respect to the products they intend to sale. Males and females are allocated equally. A sketch map for Dembo market is attached in appendix A. Sanitation and food hygiene In all the five focus groups conducted, all the groups agreed that the level of sanitation at the market leaves a lot to be desired. Lack of proper sheds, inadequate and dirty toilet, lack of fence to control access of animals to the market, poor waste management were some of the issues identified as major reasons for poor market hygiene. Mixed comments were given on the hygiene of food sold at the market. Some responses believe the food is safe for consumption whilst others doubted. The reasons for the doubts were based on how food is handled at the market, for example ready to eat vended food is exposed to dust and flies during sale as it is left uncovered to attract the attention of buyers. It was also pointed out that some vended food is sold for several days a thing that may cause food spoilage. In addition, some responses suggested that food is mishandled at homes during preparation for sale. Restriction of sale of unhygienic food The market chairman was once empowered through the HSA to check hygiene of vended foods. This was particularly between 2011 and 2012 when there was cholera outbreak in the area. Vendors whose food was sold uncovered, sold in dirty containers were sent away from the market. However, this stopped with passage of time and because the chairman and the committee members are not always 8

10 around and are oftentimes busy serving their customers. Furthermore it was noted that, the HSA monitors sale of unhygienic food closely especially during the rainy season but once the season has ended such monitoring also ceases. Fellow vendors mentioned that they are afraid to approach others vendors who appear to be selling unhygienic food as such confrontation would be deemed as an act of jealousy on their friend s business. Toilet facilities The market has two toilets which were constructed by the city assembly and the toilets are not gender demarcated. Access to the toilets is free to everyone, both vendors and customers. The market committee pointed out that the toilet facility is almost full and is not hygienic. The surface is almost covered with feacal waste. The sweeper employed by the district assembly who cleans the market vicinity does not clean the toilet for reasons not clear to the committee. Some committee members suggested that the toilet is too dirty to clean and is continuously made dirty immediately after cleaning and that frustrates the cleaner. When the cleaner was quizzed separately he indicated that the assembly did not provide him with protective gear for him to clean the toilet. One committee member commenting on the status of the toilet was quoted saying that, the toilet is cleaned by pigs which have free access to the market and the toilet meaning pigs feed on the human waste. Furthermore, it was revealed that most vendors who have homes within the market do not use the toilets; they alternatively use the toilets at their homes. Those that use the toilets are people coming from far places. The Environmental health office suggested introduction of paying toilet. When this was suggested to the market committee and other focus group members, the idea was welcome provided the toilet is kept clean. It was further suggested that a nonrestrictive fee should range from MK10 to MK20. Both the committee and the vendors indicated that the number of toilets is not enough to serve the people that come at the market. They suggested further that they would need four toilets four urinals, two for each gender. In our observation, the toilet facility was indeed full and the surface was very dirty, privacy is very low as there are no lockable doors and the toilet is not separated to accommodate different genders. However, outside the toilet we did not observe signs of fecal waste but urine was observed. The absence of fecal waste however doesn t truly suggest that there is no defecation around that area but rather it could be that such waste is consumed by pigs which roam around the market place as indicated by one respondent. The siting of the waste dumping area which is also too close to the entrance of the toilet is 9

11 restrictive. The toilet further has no hand washing facilities. On a busy market day we observed only one female entering the toilet. Water facility Water at the market is supplied from a borehole close to the market. The water facility is shared with the village people. There is a special village committee that ensures the borehole is kept in a running order by collecting monthly fees (MK 100 per house hold) meant for repairs in case of breakdowns. The market vendors also contribute money through the committee in cases of breakdown. Cleaning of the borehole vicinity is assumed the responsibility of the village committee. The market committee however hinted that the level of sanitation at the borehole is not satisfactory because there is no clear water drainage causing water stagnation. The stagnant water attracts animals such as pigs, goats and cattle. These animals would then roam around and contaminate different food products sold at the market especially vegetables Most vendors selling vegetables and other ready to eat foods mentioned that they keep water in buckets and bottles for both cleaning of their products, utensils and hand washing. However it was observed that during the market day the borehole was busy and that vendors used water sparingly to avoid interrupting sales as they frequent the borehole. For ready to eat foods, customers were observed consuming food without washing hands as vendors did not provide washing water to their customers. Cleaning of utensils such as plates used to serve customers was inadequate in most cases it was just rinsing no detergent use was observed. Waste management Waste management at the market is a challenge. The market has a designated refuse pit which was dug in the past two years through the food for work programme. The committee reported that the refuse pit is full as such waste is within reach of dogs and other animals. Furthermore, some waste is disposed along the road so that it can be carried away by running water. In addition, despite the market having a sweeper to clear waste from the market environment there are no enough materials for him to carry out the job sufficiently. It was pointed out that the market lacks collection bins and wheelbarrow to collect the waste. The refuse pit is very close to the entrance of the toilet such that it likely restricts entrance to the toilet especially during rainy season. The committee further suggested that there is need to dig a new refuse pit for the market and they deem this as a duty of the assembly which they expect to reciprocate on their compliance in paying a 10

12 daily market fee of MK100. The committee has requested for a new refuse pit to the assembly through the market cleaner and clerks from the assembly who collect the money but nothing has been done apart from a promise of the same. In their opinion, both the committee and the vendors agreed that waste is not managed properly at the market. The idea of waste recycling was welcome; the vendors indicated some knowledge of some recycled products such as handbags from plastic paper and manure from organic waste. Currently waste is not recycled. Some respondents indicated that it is laborious to be collecting waste from the market for manure others indicated that their soil is fertile enough and they do not require manure. Relationship with other stake holders The committee indicated that they have a good relationship with the Environmental health office through the HSA and Environmental health officers. The HSA, and the EHO regularly visits the market to check the level of sanitation and to sensitize the vendors on sanitation and hygiene at the market. Their visits are more frequently in the months closer to the rainy season which is a risky period for food and water borne outbreaks. Furthermore it was reported that most vendors cooperate with the HSA when they come to discharge their duties at the markets. The groups pointed out the following phrases as some of the things they are taught by the HAS and the EHO, they tell us to cover food products during sale, they tell us to wash hands after visiting the toilet, they tell us to wash our food utensils, they tell us to wash ourselves and wear clean clothes, they tell is to keep our selling environment clean. It was still observed that possibly such messages are still owned by the trainers and not fully by the vendors as knowledge was observed to be violated by practice. It is therefore suggested that the training approach should emphasize on the responsibility of the vendor on protecting the health of their customers by producing or selling safe food. Selling of food by children who may not be very knowledgeable on hygienic practices could be another reason for poor hygienic practices, it is therefore important to important to consider training them directly or through their gurdians. Relationship with the district assembly was reportedly bad because the assembly is believed not to be supportive in providing all the required infrastructure and services. For instance it took vendors to boycott paying the market fee for the assembly to build the toilet at the market. The market committee indicated that they have made a number of requests to the assembly through the revenue collectors who are regular visitors to the market and the Human Resources director to build them a shed but 11

13 nothing has been done. Since the last trash bins were worn out there has never been effort by the assembly to replace them. The committee further mentioned that they are always promised of market infrastructure improvements once the assembly has the funds. Besides that the issue has taken about four years, there has been no effort by the committee to extend their grievances to the District Commissioner and no reasons were explored for not doing so. On the relationship with veterinary office, both the committee and the vendors indicated that it is not as good as it used to be. It was reported that since the office changed the responsible officer for the market last year (2013), the current officer does not come to inspect meat sold at the market. However some officers appear for sensitization campaigns during times of animal disease outbreaks. On the relationship of vendors and market committee it was agreed by a majority that their relationship with the committee is good, they are happy with the way the committee carries its function, however only two responses mentioned that they do not regularly meet to discuss issues. Knowledge of food hygiene The committee members indicated some knowledge of food hygiene. The chairman mentioned that lack of hygiene at a market could lead to cross contamination leading to spread of diseases to a large community. To them it is important that vended food should be prepared hygienically, sold at a clean business premise and by a clean person. Furthermore it was mentioned that people have confidence that food bought from the market is hygienic. However, to most vendors sale of food on the floor due to lack of proper benches is of their concern but they are forced with the practice due to failure by the authorities to provide them proper structures. Vendors also mentioned knowledge of food borne illness resulting from consumption of contaminated food. Most of the knowledge on food hygiene was acquired through short sensitization campaigns conducted by the DEHO for both the markets and the surrounding villages and at under- five clinic. All the groups indicated that they have never received comprehensive training in food hygiene. It was further agreed in all the discussions that such training is important to ensure that vendor s sale food that is hygienic. Gender related On gender related issues we explored in the four groups if women are given equal opportunities to trade at the market. In all the groups it was agreed that women are given equal opportunities to trade. It was mentioned that allocation of place of sale is not based on gender but on the type of product one 12

14 intends to sale. Some respondents mentioned that they all (men and women) work together on issues to do with the market for example restricting run off water from flooding the market during the rainy season. Furthermore we noticed that the vice chairman for Dembo market committee is a woman and two more women are committee members, this may confirm that women are given an opportunity to be actively involved in the affairs relating to the market. We also observed that women were in shops attending to customers whilst their husbands had gone to buy more products for sale. On a lighter note we observed that the majority of vendors for ready to eat vended foods were females further inquiry as to the reasons were not made. OBSERVATIONS OF SALE OF VARIOUS PRODUCTS Fruits and vegetables The vegetable section is positioned next to a passage that also serves as a dumping site, thus customers are likely to trap dirt and bring it closer to the selling points. It was further observed that most vegetables and fruits were sold too close to the ground on a plastic sheet laid on the ground. In most cases the customers were almost stepping on the products during purchase or enquiry of product. The products were uncovered and as such were exposed to dust. Figure 1: Sale of Fruit and Vegetables close to the ground Animals such as goats, pigs and dogs were also observed roaming around the section collecting discarded vegetables and peelings. Since there is no proper drainage to control rain water, the section is likely flooded with water during rainy season and there is a high likelihood of product contamination with surface run- off water. 13

15 Fish Section As observed in the fruits and vegetable section, most of the fish was sold very close to the ground on plastic sheets, and was exposed to dust. Despite that all the fish sold was sundried, the likelihood of contamination of the product with dust and surface water during the rainy season is also high. Figure 2: Fish being sold close to the ground Slaughter and sale of meat Goats were slaughtered at the market very early in the morning and we did not observe the actual slaughter and dressing. On this day the animals slaughtered were not inspected by the veterinary officer neither was the meat inspected by a health officer. The slaughter place was very close to the road dumping site and carcass was dressed on the ground. Pigs were slaughtered away from the market and cleaned at a nearby river. The use of untreated river water to clean the carcass is a risk factor as this could lead to contamination of carcass. It was further observed that in all points where meat was sold there was also selling of cooked, roasted or fried meat just next to where fresh carcass was sold. The risk of cross contamination of heat processed meat by raw meat by hands of butcher men and utensils used is also high. It was observed that same knives and plates were used to handle both raw and cooked products. Cleaning was never properly followed, either the utensils were just wiped or dipped in water. Figure 3: Animal slaughter area Figure 4: Cooked meat prepared next t raw meat 14

16 Ready to eat foods In this section a number of risk factors were identified. Most vended foods were exposed to dust as they were sold very close and in most cases such products were sold uncovered to attract the attention of customers. Some vendors had picking wires while others did not have and customers were allowed to pick products by hands. Old newspapers were used as packaging material. In most cases the packaging paper was used too sparingly such that the vendors were touching the products while trying to wrap the product on the paper. Handling money and the product is also a likely source of cross contamination. Furthermore, a good number of vendors in ready to eat food section were children six to ten years, the children were very playful and are likely not to follow hygienic practices. Vendors selling food requiring serving in plates or cups had very little water stored for hand washing and cleaning of utensils. Utensils were either wiped or dipped in water which was re used to clean subsequent utensils. Figure 4: Water used to clean utensils Figure 6: Ready to eat food on display for sale Figure 6: Vendors hands touching food prior to packaging Figure 7: Customer touching food and not using provided metal skewer 15

17 Restaurants The market has one restaurant serving breakfast and lunches to traders. A number of short falls were identified upon inspection. The restaurant has no proper kitchen as such food is prepared in the open. In addition the restaurant building is located next to a cattle kraal. Flies and animal manure from the kraal are the likely potential sources of food contaminants. The situation is likely to be worse during the rainy season as water is likely to flow freely from the kraal to the kitchen site. Furthermore it was revealed that the restaurant operator has never received formal training in food hygiene. Figure 8: Restaurant located next to animal kraal Figure 9: Inside the restaurant Non- food items Non - food items sold in the market included clothing, hardware, kitchen utensil and groceries among others. It was observed that most kitchen ware and some clothing were accommodated in the stalls and were displayed on raised benches away from the ground. This is a good practice and should be emulated by food vendors. In addition, most non- food items were also accommodated in grocery buildings where exposure to dust, animals and surface runoff water is minimal. Figure 10: Non food items sold off the ground 16

18 Observations on other market structures Water drawing point and water storage There is only one water drawing point available, which is the borehole shared with the community. On a market day the facility is busy and storage of water by vendors was observed. However, hygiene was compromised as water was used too sparingly for cleaning utensils and hands. Water was collected in 20 liter buckets, with a lid and in some cases in buckets without a covering. Water was stored in small bottles, 5liters to 2 liters this was used for drinking and for rinsing utensils Animals such as pigs, goats and dogs were also observed roaming around the bore hole. This is again a risk factor as animal fecal droppings around the facility could be a source of water contamination. Figure 11: Water stored in bottles and used sparingly Figure 12: Animals roaming around the market water point Stalls and Grocery buildings Stalls and grocery buildings are of various designs depending on the owner s financial capacity and needs. Most of the stalls are made of simple planks and are thatched with grass. In our observation, while the stall roofs are enough to offer shelter from the sun, they are likely to leak during rainy season. The leakage problem was also pointed out in all the focus group discussions and the committee mentioned that building of a good Figure 13: Stalls shelter stands a priority above anything. The committee has made several requests for the shelter to the District Assembly but they are yet to see one. In addition most of the stalls especially for food items are designed in such a way that the products are laid 17

19 on the ground. Displaying products on the ground increases the chances of contamination of food products to dust, animals and runoff water during rainy season. Toilets and waste dumping site The toilet facilities are about 200m outside the market. In our observation they are not very clean and are not regularly visited. Towards the entrance is a full waste disposal pit. The toilet and the dumping pit would have been better separated to allow easy access. In addition access to the toilet for the physically challenged and the elderly would be very difficult due to poor design. No hand washing facilities were observed at the market. It Figure 14: Dembo market toilet and dumping site very likely that those who frequent the market toilet facilities do not wash hands after use considering that the water facility is at a distance from the market and that it is usually busy on market day. 18

20 Mfera Market Mfera market is a small vending site that operates on a daily basis. The market is located next to Mfera health center. The site has grocery buildings, maize mills, barbershops, stalls for sale of food items such as fish vegetables and sale of vended ready to eat foods also occurs here. The market is convenient to the surrounding villages, people visiting the healthy center, school children and people traveling along the east bank road. It is estimated that the market has about 40 vendors. Focus group discussion turn out Focus group discussions at Mfera market were conducted on 25 th July, For mixed male and female food vendors, eight (8) people turned out. These were four men and four women. The group had butcher men, vendors for ready to eat foods, and vegetable vendors. For mixed male and female nonfood vendors, eight (8) people turned up for the discussion. In this group there were four males and four females. This group had barbershop owners, bicycle transporters, maize mill operators. Similarly, focus group discussions for General vendors males only and General vendors females only had eight (8) participants each. Market administration and lay out The market once had a functional committee but since the chairman and other influential committee members lost their business, the committee ceased to function. Since then, there has been no election to replace the members. The village chief is involved in the running of the market. He oversees the elections and he is responsible for allocation of place of sale for vendors who would like to build a stall or grocery building. The market is not in control of the district assembly as such the cleaning service is provided by a volunteer identified by the village headman. The sweeper collects dues from the vendors. The collection has some difficulties as it was reported that some vendors default on some days. The vendors mentioned that the sweeper is an understanding person. A sketch market layout is presented in Appendix B. In terms of lay out, there is no proper order as sections for different products. The village chief allocates space depending on space availability. For non- permanent vendors (those who do not need to build a stall) they allocate themselves a place depending on space availability. There is no register for the vendors such that everyone is free to conduct business at the premise at least for the temporary vendors. 19