The rent for stands or stalls in state-run markets has been reduced. What the traders of Ngozi and Gitega welcome. Even merchants who lost their spaces last July have the hope of regaining them.
The ministry in charge of finance reviewed the measure taken in July 2023 for traders in markets built by the State. Which ? The Burundian Revenue Office (OBR) has taken over the management of markets built by the State or its development partners to the detriment of the communes and the Bujumbura town hall. The OBR has started collecting stand rental fees in these markets. In addition to this, the amount that the trader must pay monthly to the OBR was multiplied by 10 or even more than 15. That’s not all, the government decided to discourage the system of subletting stands in the markets. It is for this reason that the stalls “ sublet » were automatically assigned to “ subtenants » to the detriment of “ sub-lessors » even if the latter have signed contracts with market managers such as the municipalities or the town hall of Bujumbura.
This decision caused a lot of ink and saliva to flow. The traders were outraged, but in vain. After seven months of implementing this measure, the government decided to review it and lighten it a little. From now on, the monthly stand rents and stalls equivalent to double those which were paid before July 2023. The revenue from this rental will be shared equitably between the OBR and the municipality where the market concerned is located. In addition, subletting of stands or stalls is prohibited. Only the OBR is competent to sign the lease contract with the tenants. So, how did the traders of Ngozi and Gitega receive this measure?
Ngozi traders welcome the measure
« The measure taken in July 2023 by the OBR was not fair at all », specifies the first name Salvator, trader at the Ngozi market. For him, it is not reasonable to give a shop for free to someone who has invested nothing in it. Fortunately, in Ngozi, not all the alleged tenants agreed to take other people’s shops. “ For example, I work in another person’s shop, but I did not agree to take it even though the OBR gave it to me. I invited its owner to come and register it under his name », testifies Mr. Salvator
The Ngozi market has 2,000 places and earned the commune of Ngozi 18 million FBu per month until June 2023. Since then, the commune has earned nothing.
In addition to this, the exorbitant increase in the fees that merchants pay monthly to the State was not fair. For example, Mr. Salvator paid 8,000 FBu to the municipality but, with the OBR measure, he paid 100,000 FBu per month. On the other hand, with the revision of the measure, he will pay only 16,000 FBu monthly. “ As the State now decides to reduce the measure, so much the better. Hopefully this will remain unchanged for a long time », wishes Mr. Salvator.
Radjabu Havyarimana, representative of traders in Ngozi province, says that traders in this province welcome the review of the measure. Today, the stand rental fees imposed by the OBR are no longer exorbitant and the former owners of the stalls can take them back. In addition to this, an independent commission which had been set up to regularize disputes between traders helped to mitigate the effects of this measure.
THE ” subtenants » in good faith avoided the worst
For Samson Nkurunziza, commissioner of the Ngozi market, the measure taken in June 2023 by the OBR was received differently. Some traders were delighted to have benefited from the shops they previously rented to buyers. But other good faith traders did not want to take the stands that did not belong to them. “ We continued to advocate for merchants to get this problem resolved », affirmed M. Nkurunziza.
The Ngozi market has stalls or stands which are entirely built by the municipality, but there are others which were built by the traders themselves with sheet metal paid for with their own funds. According to Mr. Nkurunziza, this second category of traders has caused a lot of problems, because a trader who has spent millions of Burundian francs to build a stand cannot digest the fact that his stall is allocated to someone else for free. . Fortunately, as the measure has been revised, this represents a sigh of relief for people who are taking back their shops.
Note that the Ngozi market has 2000 places and earned the municipality 18 million FBu monthly until June 2023 according to Mr. Nkurunziza. Since then, the town has gained nothing. The shortfall is estimated at more than 120 million FBu during the seven months of negotiations.
« The new measure is promising. Even traders who have already paid the monthly rent in accordance with the recent OBR tariff will be reimbursed », reassures Désiré Minani, governor of the province of Ngozi. But how will traders be reimbursed? This provincial authority explains that the number of months will be calculated proportional to the amount already paid, that is to say that the merchants will work several months without paying the rent in order to compensate for all the costs already paid.
But the people who risk paying the price according to Mr. Minani are the tenants (who have not paid a single penny to the OBR since July 2023) but who will put the shops back in the hands of the former tenants. Until then, it has not yet been clearly determined who will pay these unpaid debts.
In Gitega, the new measure was well received
« The money we paid monthly to the OBR since July 2023 was a bit overvalued. But as the State decides to reduce the fees to be paid per month, this is something to be welcomed. In addition to this, we hope that the owners who lost their shops even though they had signed contracts with the municipality of Gitega will take them back. », Indicates Fiacre Irankunda, trader at the Gitega market. He explains that there are people who acquired shops worth several million FBu and who, all of a sudden, lost them to the tenants. This measure was on the one hand unfair.
Most traders in Gitega market believe that the money they paid monthly to the OBR since July 2023 was a bit overvalued.
Godeliève Maua, a trader met at the Gitega market, agrees. For her, as the State has just favorably reviewed the measure, it is something to be welcomed, because the old measure provoked indignation among traders without forgetting conflicts between the old and new tenants of the shops. It’s not easy to digest the fact of losing your shop so gratuitously.
The press release from Bujumbura town hall sowed doubt in Gitega
Following a press release made public by the mayor of the city Bujumbura on January 30, 2024 by which it temporarily suspended the takeover of the shops by the former tenants, this caused confusion even in the town of Gitega. Some traders at the Gitega market did not understand whether or not they were affected by this press release. Thus, some tenants who have acquired the shops since July 2023 have refused to comply. This caused misunderstandings between these two categories of traders. Even the local administration had to intervene to shed light and calm things down.
« The government of Burundi has reformed the management of markets built by the State or its development partners with the aim of discouraging people who occupy a lot of stalls, those who want to sell them or those who sublet them. », Indicates Venant Manirambona, governor of the province of Gitega. For this provincial authority, this situation must end and traders must know that the markets belong to the State, therefore they are supposed to rent the ” spaces » to this one.
Coming Manirambona, governor of the province of Gitega (in the middle) reminds traders that the markets belong to the State, therefore they are supposed to rent the “spaces” to it.
But Mr. Manirambona admits that the government has improved certain things. It is for this reason that the measure taken by the OBR in July 2023 is now over. This is to regularize certain traders who have lost their shops who have given convincing reasons to take them back. Today, the work that is underway is the identification and registration of traders who must occupy “ spaces » in the markets and who will sign contracts with the OBR.
#Burundi #Eco #OBR #give #hope #traders #Ngozi #Gitega #markets
