Vendors want open-air market running

The Barbados Association of Retailers, Vendors, and Entrepreneurs (BARVEN) is trusting Government’s decision to extend the national lockdown until the end of the month.

However, BARVEN’s President Alistair Alexander is appealing to authorities to allow the open-air market on the Mighty Grynner Highway to reopen as soon as possible, to help with the effective distribution of local produce from farmers to consumers.

Alexander indicated that while Government has been doing a fairly good job at taking produce from farmers to distribute in its care packages, he is questioning how much longer the project could be sustained. He explained that one of the technical difficulties Government faced was that it failed to get locally grown fruits and vegetables collected from farmers, out to the population in a timely manner, leading to spoilage.

Barbados TODAY understands that some farmers were counting their losses as a result of spoilage at their farms because they have been unable to sell their produce to vendors.

The president said BARVEN’s open-air market which was moved to the Highway last year during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow for adequate social distancing, was equipped to reopen at this time.

“We believe that the BARVEN market is such an operation. BARVEN has security at its entrances with sanitizers and temperature monitors and it was specially laid out for the COVID scenario. It has open-air ventilation and it has the proper space for social distancing.

“I think that it is more suited than a supermarket for safe distribution of food. This move would help the farmers and it would also help the population to access the fresh produce that is necessary for their health at this time. If people have healthy bodies, then they have a better chance of surviving if they contract the virus.

“What we find crucial at this time, is that with the global shutdown, things can go in any direction. BARVEN finds that it is crucial at this time to have a sustainable model for food security and distribution,” he said.

And while Government promised vendors a weekly financial package during the period of pause, Alexander said some of those in the vending community have complained that they were unable to access the funds because they do not have access to computers which are needed to facilitate the process.

“There are a lot of vendors who do not have those facilities. And the ones who do not have those types of facilities would be the ones who would be most vulnerable. More than one vendor called me today concerned that they are able to access the money as soon as possible. They are saying that they are not thinking about themselves, but the children.

“We have real situations here and the possibility of real hardship is there. The Prime Minister [Mia Amor Mottley] told the people, if they need assistance, to shout a neighbour or shout somebody. The vendors are shouting and they are crying out for help as they need to access those funds,” he said.

Alexander said he spoke to the Ministry of Small Business about ways of resolving the situation to allow the vendors access to the funds, particularly since it was announced by Mottley on Monday that the national lockdown would be extended.

“I have been in contact with Government and they have assured me that they would do the utmost best to work out some system where nobody falls through the track,” Alexander said. (anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb)