Enterprise Dynamics and COVID-19 Struggles of Women Informal Food Vendors in Nairobi’s Informal Settlements

This study explores the business dynamics, opportunities, and challenges faced by women street food vendors in selected informal settlements of Nairobi. It examines how they manage these challenges, including the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. While many studies have investigated informal food vendors, less is known about women operating in these roles within urban informal settlements. This paper presents results from a new quantitative survey of 448 women informal food vendors across four informal settlements in Nairobi: Mukuru Kwa Njenga, Mukuru Kwa Reuben, Viwandani, and Mathare. Our findings show that most women vendors are recent entrants to the informal food vending sector, and their participation is mainly driven by economic survival. However, they face numerous operational challenges that limit their daily income, despite adopting multiple strategies related to location, operations, pricing, stock, security, and partnerships to grow their enterprises. These challenges intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic due to public health measures aimed at limiting the spread of the virus. The paper highlights some key pandemic-related challenges faced by the participating vendors.