City Askaris To Arrest Nairobians Who Buy From Hawkers in Undesignated Areas, Mosiria Warns

Nairobi residents risk arrest if caught purchasing goods from street hawkers operating outside designated areas, the county government has warned in a major enforcement shift that now targets buyers alongside sellers.

Geoffrey Mosiria, Nairobi’s Chief Officer for Environment, announced the new crackdown on Friday, stating that customers will be treated as accomplices in illegal hawking activities. The warning comes as city authorities intensify efforts to restore order in the capital’s busy streets.

“We are stepping up enforcement efforts to ensure compliance. Going forward, enforcement will not only target hawkers operating in undesignated areas but also individuals buying from them, as they are aiding and abetting this illegality,” Mosiria posted on social media platform X.

The announcement marks a significant escalation in the county’s battle against unauthorized street vending, which officials say continues to clog pedestrian walkways and create congestion in the city center despite previous relocations.

Earlier this year in January, Governor Johnson Sakaja moved hawkers from main thoroughfares to designated backstreets between Tom Mboya Street and Kirinyaga Road. The directive banned hawking on major arteries including Moi Avenue, Haile Selassie Avenue, Kenneth Matiba Road, Latema Road, Ronald Ngala Street, Mfangano Street, Hakati Road and River Road.

Under the current arrangement, hawkers are permitted to operate in the allocated backstreets from 4pm to 10pm, Monday through Saturday. However, Mosiria notes that many vendors have defied these restrictions, returning to main streets and blocking pedestrian access.

The decision to target buyers represents an unprecedented approach in Kenya’s urban management, where enforcement has traditionally focused solely on vendors. The move follows a motion passed by Nairobi Members of County Assembly requiring the Sakaja administration to establish proper trading spaces for hawkers.

City residents now face the prospect of arrest simply for purchasing items like fruits, vegetables, or household goods from vendors operating outside the designated zones. The policy raises questions about how authorities will implement the arrests and whether buyers will receive prior warning about vendors’ legal status.

The crackdown reflects broader tensions between Nairobi’s informal economy and urban planning objectives, as thousands of hawkers depend on street vending for their livelihoods while the county seeks to maintain orderly public spaces and smooth pedestrian flow in the bustling central business district.