The Street Vendors in the District Neighborhood (A Study in Population Geography)

Abstract

The study aims to analyze the situation of the population working in street vending, aged 6 years and above, in the Al-Hai District, and to identify their demographic, social, economic, and family characteristics, as well as their working conditions, reasons for working, and the resulting effects. The study relied on data from the 2024 Iraq population census, along with a stratified proportional sample of 319 forms. The number of street vendors in the district was 1,850, making up 11.8% of the total number of street vendors in Wasit Governorate, which is 15,680 vendors. Numerical distribution showed that 75.1% of them were concentrated in the Al-Hai district center, compared to 24.9% in Al-Bashaer Subdistrict, with 66.1% in urban areas and 33.9% in rural areas. Sample results indicated that a large proportion of street vendors had low educational levels and monthly incomes, as schooling did not exceed the primary stage for 77.7% of them, while 74.6% had a monthly income of less than 300,000 dinars. Low income ranked first among the effects on street vendors at 32.6%, followed by the deterioration of agriculture at 20.7%, illiteracy at 18.5%, and School dropout was at 16.6%, while the percentage of those avoiding marriage was 17.1% among single workers who are street vendors. These results show a link between the spread of street vending and limited economic opportunities, low income and education levels, with differences between administrative units and between urban and rural areas