BY MAINE LIVETT – ISLES MEDIA FREELANCER
STRUGGLING women and mothers of the Gizo community in the heart of the Western province, Solomon Islands have sacrificed nights, days, and weekends to bring in additional income for their families and gain financial independence.
These rural women vendors are active members of a micro-financing group called the Gizo Women Initiative Group (GWIG) who have turned their side hustles into a small but thriving full-time business in Gizo.
Apart from the issue of earning for basic survival, women roadside vendors like Florence Maelalo, who is also the group’s treasurer said their main concern is to make earns meet to sustain the livelihood of their families, such as to put food on the table daily, and meeting their children’s school fees and other necessities.
“Despite the uncertainties of the informal sector caused by the impact of the Covid pandemic, women, mothers, and housewives (Members of the Gizo Women Initiative Group) will continue to utilize the little availability of the public spaces within the Gizo Township to sell ours produces to supplement the income of her family.
“For that obvious purpose a lot of women hustling day in day out to help shoulder family obligations, as well as for their communities,” said Florence, who is the Treasurer of the Gizo Women Initiative Group. “And not only that, but women are also the consistent contributors in their communities.”


Maelalo revealed that the idea to set up the Gizo Women Initiative Group was founded by former members who have faced challenges on how to survive and make a living as daily street vendors.
She said the formal registration of the group was recently done in 2019 with the help of a lawyer who contested for the Gizo Kolobangara seat during the previous by-elections.
The commitment shown by these women in the right direction has previously triggered tangible support from the New Zealand government to assist the group with funds to not only set up their proper space for marketing but also to operate their own business called the Brigitte Nicholes Café at the heart of the Gizo Township.
The Café is now famous for serving local customers in Gizo with fish and chips, chicken stews, juice drinks, ice cream, etc.
However, she revealed that the challenges faced with their current setup is the lack of space to cater all the members the group to do business. Another major challenge is the current deteriorating state of the building that housed the Café.
Maelalo recalled that in the past women street vendors in Gizo are faced with poor working conditions and irregular incomes.


“Vendors are too often exposing them to several health issues, and extreme weather conditions on the daily basis. Apart from low access to sanitation and water, these vendors are often forced to play three roles – housewife, mother, and worker, the stress of it affects their health,” Maelalo said.
“Life on the roadside is never easy. Crimes like theft, and sexual harassment, etc., are very common but not reported. Further, women vendors are seen as a public nuisance – They constantly face the threat of eviction and harassment by policemen and local authorities,” she recalled.