Staff Reporter
The Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Division Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a multitude of stakeholders in a ceremony held to set up a collaborative framework for the forthcoming Ehsaas Street Hawkers Initiative.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Safety and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Sania Nishtar was also present on the occasion.
As per the memorandum, Ehsaas has joined hands with Capital Development Authority (CDA), Islamabad Capital Territory Administration (ICTA), Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI), and Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) to collaboratively steer the design and execution of the Ehsaas Street Hawkers’ Initiative under Mazdoor Ka Ehsaas.
The memorandum is centred on improving the ecosystem for street vending.
According to conservative estimates, there are around 20,000 street vendors operating in Islamabad, who are generating annual net income up to Rupees 9.6 billion.
Ehsaas’ support for street vendors is in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of the welfare state based on Riyasat-e-Madina model.
In this regard, PASSD is collaborating with city authorities and research institutes to organize street vending in a more sustainable manner.
Dr. Nishtar said in a statement after signing the MoU, “For the first time in Pakistan, the government is embarking upon the initiative for street vendors.
This is a very difficult policy space; we are trying to work out solutions.”
She then continued, The mar-ginalized segment of street vendors is an integral part of the local economy, which cannot be wished away in a low-income country like Pakistan.
