Markets : Where Anarchy Reigns!

Most markets in various cities in the country are not identified from the billboards that name them. It is the traffic and disorder that reign alongside certain roads in a city that reveal the existence of a market. Trading in open air or adjacent to major streets where many potential buyers converge, and those who sell in well-designed sheds and shops or in any available crowded space irrespective of its hygienic conditions depicts the state of most markets, especially in the economic and political capital cities of Cameroon. Although the government is taking measures to review the situation, the efforts seem to face resistance from traders and even buyers.
Naturally, the older and centrally located markets in Yaounde seem better equipped than those in the peripheries. But, the growing number of traders is putting pressure on the ability of the councils to provide adequate market infrastructure. But the creation of peripheral markets and the refurbishment of old markets have not stopped traders from displaying goods along the road. Such is the situation at the Mokolo, Mfoundi and Acacia markets in Yaounde.  In an ideal situation, traders are supposed to sell in a well sheltered shop or a stall in order to avert adverse health risks resulting from environmental conditions. The situation in Yaounde is a mix of people trading in open spaces generally on the ground, or ill-adapted market spaces. Some traders have improvised trading spaces such as selling under umbrellas and locally designed canopies. With people selling in any available space within or around a market, this has made movement in and around markets difficult.
In the Mokolo, Essos and Mvog Betsi markets, car parks have been turned into commercial spaces by unruly traders. A ...