Vendors at the Havana four-way along Eneas Peter Nanyemba Road in Windhoek are concerned about their business operations once road construction commences there.

They expect the City of Windhoek to move them to a suitable area where they can continue to sell their products, which they stress is their only means of income.

Andjamba Johannes had this to say.“You cannot just move the people from here and just leave them to be at home like that. They have nowhere to get their bread if you move them here and then you do not put them somewhere else.”

Teopolina Nghitombo also raised her concerns.“You want to remove us from here. This is where we get our money to feed our kids. If you want to remove us, should we just stay at home"?

“We will have a problem at this place. It will ruin our plans. We don't know where we will be taken from here,” asked Brucely Kaluhapa.

Another concerned vendor is Denitolia Ngipangwela.“The problem is this road is where we get money to feed our children. So, if we won't be selling along the road, we need a permanent place from which to sell our things.”

Elia Salom is also in the dark about his business.“I hear we will be going to Ongos, but I don't think that is a good idea. It is very far, and some of us stay here. If we go all the way there, who will support us"?

NBC News reached out to the Communications Manager at the City of Windhoek, Harold Akwenye, who said the City is aware of the vendors and recognises the importance of informal trading to them as a means of making a living.

He stated that the City will carry out the construction process in a humane, orderly, and lawful manner and that the municipality has already identified a site to which the vendors will be relocated.

“The city has already earmarked an alternative site where the vendors will be relocated, and they are aware of that as well. However, before relocation takes place, the city needs to install electricity and other basic facilities at the identified site. Our priority as the City of Windhoek is to ensure public safety, allow road construction to proceed without obstruction, and at the same time, minimize socioeconomic disruption to the vendors.”

Akwenye added that further details and timelines will be communicated directly to the affected vendors once all preparations are finalised.