Informal Trading

The government should do more to develop and upskill these young entrepreneurs who are already street smart

Photographer and graphic designer Dahlia Maubane tracks the ways of street hairstylists as insight on how women use and negotiate urban spaces.

The writer spends some hours visiting a hair salon where clients have the options to dye, curl, braid, relax, straighten, extend, or cut their hair.

Johannesburg’s hub of second-hand garment traders – run under the leadership of the African Traders Organisation – woos trendy and indigent customers.

But the thriving informal economy situated near the department’s Marabastad offices is now feeling the pinch, thanks to its increased efficiency.

Hailed as the panacea for poverty in South Africa, microcredit has instead resulted in a spike in poverty, writes Milford Bateman.

While America’s economy may best be known for its ultra-capitalist ways, local bartering between tradesmen is as trendy today as ever.

”The authorities still think we are dirty, uneducated and can’t make decisions for ourselves”