Asunción merchants decry lack of control over informal street vendors

Formal businesses in Asunción's historic center are voicing strong complaints about the unchecked growth of informal street vendors, accusing the municipality of failing to manage the situation effectively. Merchants along Palma, Estrella, and Oliva streets report that the Asunción Municipality, under Mayor Luis Bello, is ignoring their concerns about unfair competition that is crippling businesses that comply with tax obligations.

The lack of municipal response has led to a significant increase in street stalls, with vendors occupying public spaces without proper planning or adherence to technical criteria. Complainants argue that the current system for regulating vendor fees is failing, allowing informality to flourish unchecked. This institutional inaction, they claim, encourages arbitrary occupation of public areas and forces formal businesses to consider leaving the city center.

Further evidence of the breakdown in control is the meager revenue the municipality collects from this sector. Official reports for 2025 and early 2026 show that the municipality collected only G. 3,989,000 in patent fees from street vendors throughout 2025. This minimal amount highlights the municipality's apparent inability or unwillingness to enforce existing ordinances, such as those differentiating between mobile and stationary vendors and requiring fronting business owner consent for stationary setups. The Municipal Police of Vigilance is reportedly not applying legal sanctions despite these systematic breaches.