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 Amidst
all the news about military coups, stock market
tumble, airport runway cracks and what not Thailand
seems to be making the headlines a lot lately. But
what seems to not be making the international headlines
is incidents between the city authorities and the
street vendors in Bangkok.
A few weeks ago roads were closed in the Bobae
market area in the middle of Bangkok, but not for
any democratic demonstrations to oust any government,
but was a collection of traders that run small little
carts along Bangkok’s side streets demanding
for access to use the area to continue their business.
Over the years authorities and street vendors have
had a number of such encounters in different settings.
Yet, despite these clashes that make the local news,
in general it seems the circumstances of the street
vendors in Bangkok have improved. To check this
assumption Friedrich Naumann Foundation office conducted
a small survey, Cost and Restrictions to Trade:
Street vending in Bangkok, to map out the current
attitudes and problems of the street vendors, and
to get a look of the situation from their view.
The interview was conducted on four sets of samples
of the same size, from four different districts
of Bangkok. Respondents reported a few individual
cases of protection fees or harassment, but generally
they could carry on their trade without overwhelming
problems. The survey found that surprisingly many,
over half, of the interviewed vendors were registered
but they did not have high views of the benefits
of registering – many reported they did it
only to avoid trouble. Also almost half found starting
a business in general complicated and also expensive.
 Not
too surprisingly, the biggest problems the vendors
reported concerned access to capital. For a majority,
access to a bank loan is difficult or impossible.
Almost all who had applied for a loan found it difficult,
and those who had never applied did not have a good
idea about how to do it. Many turned to unofficial
loans outside of the bank, and surprisingly also
reported equal or even better conditions for the
unofficial loans compared to a bank loan, which
can only be understood as a sign of misinformation.
Differences between the vendors acting in public
spaces and private grounds were small, except for
the fact that the vendors on public grounds did
pay a fee, but no official rent and therefore did
not have a written agreement as most of the vendors
on private ground did.
In general the original hypothesis FNF had about
the improvement of the conditions was accurate.
The conditions and rights of the vendors have improved
from the past, but the study shows that many fundamental
problems that hinder the street vendors work or
deny some fundamental rights, still persist. Most
of all the survey confirms our belief that solid
property rights are a requirement for easier and
more equal access to capital and as such, absolutely
essential for economic betterment.
Details for the survey
and its findings with graphic
depictions and methodology along with the full
questionnaire for the survey are provided here.
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