Johannesburg - Small business owners in and around Nasrec where the ANC's 55th National Conference is taking place are hopeful that the gathering will inject some much-needed money into their pockets.

The traders said they were excited to be at the five-day conference of the ruling party. On Saturday they indicated that they anticipated the second day of the conference to have a positive outcome for their businesses.

Lined up on Nasrec Road, a few metres away from the expo centre, some traders were unpacking their ANC merchandise in their gazebos while some were tending to their gas stoves to prepare to cook the food they would sell for the day, despite the gloomy weather.

Pushing her trolley filled with sweets, gums and chips, Nomlindo Siswana from Molofo in Soweto, said she hoped that Saturday's gathering would bring more business for her and fellow traders as compared to the first day.

Siswana had to sleep in the streets in order to retain her trading space and avoid the traffic and other logistics. She said she took her last money to buy enough stock throughout the four-day conference.

Street vendors at Nasrec where the ANC is holding its elective conference. Picture: Tshepiso Tshabalala

“I have been here since yesterday (Friday) morning at 8am. Business was pretty slow then, so other traders and I opted to sleep here, hoping to get more sales. But we are hopeful that today will be different. I took this risk because it would be costly for me to travel all the way from Soweto for the duration of the conference,” said Siswana.

Regarding safety issues, Siswana said the heavy police presence made it less scary, and she felt much safer.

“The police were moving around at night checking cars and ensuring that everyone was safe. That comforted me knowing that we had them looking out for us,” she added.

Traders outside Nasrec in Soweto as the ANC conference continues. Picture:Timothy Bernard

Although Siswana was hopeful that the second day of the conference would boost her business, she wished the party had created a much friendlier environment for traders.

Echoing the same sentiments was Matshidiso Malome, who said that regularly, traders on the stadium’s database would get a communique from the stadium alerting traders of a big event that would be taking place and giving them adequate time to prepare themselves.

“Normally, when there is an event here at the stadium, we are much closer to it than we are now. Right now, they have put us one kilometre away from the main venue. That, on its own, limits our business. Not everyone would want to walk this far because people would be tired from the proceedings,” said Malome.

Pushing another trolley not far from Siswana was Siyamthemba Nkosi, who was picking up recyclable soft drink bottles and cans. Nkosi, who lives on the streets of Johannesburg, said he was led to Nasrec by the many cars on the road. He said he thought a soccer match was taking place and went there to pick up plastic bottles and other recyclable materials.

Nkosi said he was happy he got as many recyclables as he did.

Siyamthemba Nkosi collecting plastic bottles outside Nasrec where the ANC is holding its elective conference. Picture: Tshepiso Tshabalala

“I have not collected so many bottles in a while. I’m going straight to sell my bottles. The money I would make from this batch might be enough to get me food for the next five days or less,” he said.

“One bottle can be sold for as little as R2, depending on its size. This is why I need to make sure that I come back here to recycle some more bottles. So far, I have not seen another recycler around here. Therefore, this makes it easier for me to come back and get more bottles,” he said.