Today I called up my friends Steven, AKA Yagayagayo, and Peter, who live in Mombasa (or, rather, they live in some old ruins on the edge of the island). Oh shit did they have news for me. According to them, to eliminate informal sector competition, formal sector clothing businesses have lobbied the Municipal Council of Mombasa to rid the citys streets of unlicensed sidewalk shops that sell donated clothing at dirt cheap prices. Might sound fair from a legal standpoint, but a sizable portion of Mombasas poor workers probably just lost their livelihoods. Peter went out of business and Stevens services, carrying around clothes for an informal retailer, are no longer needed. Yeah so I spend more time thinking about getting my next workout in than about things I take for granted like economic stability. Not cool. Hoping Peter and Yaga can find alternative employment.
Posted on: Tue, 15 Oct 2013 05:09:28 +0000