Exploring the lucrative begging business in Dar city
There are those who willingly beg by taking advantage of their conditions and thosewho are trafficked and forced to beg on the streets by people who only want to exploit them. PHOTO|SUNDAY GEORGE
What you need to know:
- Some beggars are living a better life than some of those who donate the “little” they have to them because it is that little that actually turns them into prosperous beggars
By Helena Ambele
Some people tend to pity beggars because they feel like they are helpless. If I told you that these people earn more money in a day than those who toil and sweat for their money in a month do, would you believe me?
Begging, especially for money is amongst those things that people often take as a behaviour for the “poor” or helpless and may sometimes feel like a burden. That’s why to some, no matter how desperate they get, begging for money even from relatives is not an option. All because they do not want to be looked at with disdain.
Most beggars in our country are either persons with disabilities or women with young children. These women send the children to beg passers-by for money. Many use their condition as an advantage to gain pity from the people they ask for money from and the majority of these strangers do feel sorry for them and end up giving in.
The irony to all this is, they are living a financially capable and independent life- sadly better than some of those who donate the “little” they have to them. I am quoting the word little because it is that little that actually turns them into middle-class or prosperous beggars. Do not underestimate them at all.
Ricardo,* a petty trader in Makumbusho narrates to Life& Style about a well-known beggar at Makumbusho bust stand. He tells of how she earns a lot from begging to the point where she’s built a big house in Mbagala and owns a Bajaj (three-wheeler) for business too.
Also Read: Fraudsters pose as ordinary beggars in Dar
We normally hear that most of these beggars are financially well-off and some have even gone to the extent of building admirable houses and even owning other small businesses that probably you and I don’t have. Most even educate their children to the highest level of education just through begging.
“There’s a disabled woman who normally sits by the corner near the washrooms. She is famous here at Makumbusho and she doesn’t shy away from telling those she’s free with what she owns,” he says.
“For her, having Sh1 million is not a problem at all. She doesn’t have petty problems and she is better off than many of us,” he adds laughing.
He goes ahead and tells me that this beggar was once given a kiosk at the small Makumbusho market but she rented it instead because she simply means business and at the same time cannot let go of the “begging” business she is currently into because she earns a lot from it.
In recent events around July, there was an arrest of Tanzanian beggars, most of whom were children with disabilities taken to Nairobi, Kenya to beg for their masters. They are usually taken from their parents and promised a better life but once they get there, they become lapdogs and are denied all contact with their families. This shows that some of these people do not do this willingly and are tricked into it and once they fall into the trap getting out becomes a hurdle.
This definitely shows there are two sides to begging; those who willingly do it by taking advantage of their disabilities or condition and those who are trafficked and forced to beg on the streets by people who only want to exploit them.
Sheikh,* a beggar around Mlimani City tells Life&Style that he has heard of such terrifying stories and he is saddened by the trafficking done especially to children who cannot defend themselves. Fortunately, he says he has never experienced such but he begs on his own will so he’s not controlled by anyone.
When asked if he would stop begging if a Good Samaritan would offer him the capital to start a business, he quickly agrees and says he would.
“Nobody likes begging, we are just forced to by life’s circumstances. My lifelong dream is to become a farmer so if I got the chance to achieve that dream, I would take it with open arms. The problem is when most people look at us,0 they underestimate our abilities, so getting employed is a challenge,” he says.
He continues to narrate how he once tried looking for an alternative through the loans that are usually given by the government to persons with disabilities and women so that he could buy a bajaj but he was not successful.
“I did everything I was instructed to do and filled in the required forms but in the end I was given Sh90, 000 only! Isn’t that humiliating? How could I have bought a bajaj with that amount? That honestly disappointed me and I never bothered trying again,” recalls Sheikh angrily.
Most of those who beg do not do it out of poverty, which is why once a person is taken off the streets, they are provided with counselling services. PHOTO|SUNDAY GEORGE
Sheikh earns between Sh5,000 and 8,000 a day and on a very good day, he earns Sh15,000. Although he says he uses some of the money to buy himself food for he cannot stay hungry, I notice that he might not be telling me the whole truth. This is probably because he doesn’t want to open up to a stranger and is afraid that his business might come to a close soon since the government is struggling to get rid of beggars from the streets.
Tungi Mwanjala, the vice chairperson of Tanzania Federation of Disabled People’s Organisations (SHIVYAWATA) – says that begging done by people with pisabilities (PWD’s) has actually reduced since government introduced the 2 percent loans for PWD’s issued by local government authorities.
“The percentage of beggars with disabilities has actually reduced by a large margin and this is after getting the loans that have helped them become self-employed. Most of those who managed to get the loans stopped begging and are now earning an income through tricycles “bajaj” as well as other businesses,” she explains.
Sheikh confirms to be educating his children, paying rent and taking care of his family with what he earns from the streets although he was defensive and emphasised that his children go to public schools. He also says that he managed to get hold of a piece of land at Ifakara that he’d like to use to farm rice and all he’s lacking is the money to start his journey in agribusiness.
One thing I noticed as I sat down with him is that whenever people gave him notes, he’d put them in his pocket and leave the Sh100 and Sh200 coins on his mat.
Since the 1980’s the government has been trying to sweep off beggars from the streets but it looks like its efforts have not borne any fruit. Beggars are still all over the country and are out of control. It definitely seems like government needs to look for new strategies to get them off the street but at the same time help them live normal decent lives.
Tungi says she doesn’t condone begging and especially those who take advantage of their disabilities to do so. Furthermore, she suggests that those who pretend to be disabled in order to beg should be dealt with legally and immediately.
“In my opinion, people with disabilities who are beggars should immediately stop begging and instead use the opportunities available in our councils to better their lives. Legal action should be taken against those who pretend to be disabled to seek help,” she notes.
Patrobas Katambi, the Deputy Minister, Prime Minister’s Office (Labour, Youth, Employment & Persons with Disability) says the government is still making an effort to combat begging.
“The Dar City Council (Ilala) authorities have passed a bylaw for social welfare that deals with the beggars challenge. A lot of evidence shows that begging is not a problem of poverty but rather a mental and habitual problem, which is why they get counselled and encouraged so they can later apply for the 2 percent loans,” says the deputy minister.
*Names have been changed.
