Ugandan Traders Have Rough Nights As Lockdown Drags On

Posted by: Kyeyune Andrew Jonathan in Uganda news July 2, 2021

As night draws closer, traders in the Ugandan capital at the country’s biggest market prepare for another long night’s sleep. They sleep between the fruit and vegetable stalls, cold as ice because they are forbidden to return home after a day’s work.

When the strict 42-day lockdown came into action, vendors at Nakasero market in downtown Kampala were allowed to continue operating.

They were, however, given only one operating condition, which is not returning home but instead sleep where they work from.

The government distributed mosquito nets as well as drinking water and soap to roughly 600 vendors. Now the traders face a six-week stretch away from home confined to the cramped quarters of the marketplace.

It is so uncomfortable, to begin with, due to the scarce personal space, and amenities ill equipped to handle so many people.

In the evenings, the lucky ones find sleeping spaces between mountains of fresh produce and crates of chickens.

They are grateful for the thin roof that covers their heads despite the air that is time and again stale and muggy.

The less fortunate sleep in the open, curled up on sheets of cardboard or hessian sacks to stay warm all night.

‘’I am sleeping on a mat, and some pieces of boxes. Together with my mosquito net. Yes, that is all. It is not like I am home where I close the door. But since I am in the market, an open place, of course, you feel the coldness between you,’’ said Abu Kikomeko, a 23-year-old university student.

Kikomeko helps out his aunt at her vegetable stall at Nakasero and said he appreciates the mosquito net. He however misses the warmth of his bed.

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