24-26 May 2002.

The Context
Common trends in globalization and economic liberalization throughout Asia have led to a collective growth in the informal sector. Widespread unemployment in the formal economy has been a significant byproduct of policies advocated by multi-lateral financial institutions in the region. As reflected in domestic policies, reforms have included downsizing of the public sector, labour market reforms to increase flexibility and mobility in the formal sector, reduced trade protections, and removal of subsidies. In many parts of Asia, informal employment comprises over 90 percent of the workforce (ILO, 2001).

The Rationale
Housing more than half the world's population and the largest number of the poor, the shared problems that South Asian and South East Asian nations face at the inception of the 21st century suggest the need for a regional meeting to address the challenges and push forth collectively. The objective of this conference is to bring together Asian nations in an effort to address issues including working conditions, social protection, microfinancing, child labor, and women in the informal sector. The aim is also to reinforce the legitimacy of the informal economy. Participants will include government officials, trade unionists, journalists, social activists and academics.

Proposed Outcomes 
The following are expected to be the main achievements of the Conference,
The promotion of regional solidarity on issues of the street vendors and the urban poor
The development of a multi-sectoral analysis of the issues of the unorganized sector
An exchange of strategies and political, legal and economic alternatives for street vendors and the unorganized sector

The declaration of a Common Resolution that outlines the demands of the unorganized sector and the comprehensive plan of action to be pursued across stakeholder groups at a national and regional level

The Convenor
Hawkers Sangram Committee (A Struggle for Street Vendors) is a spontaneous movement that has been borne of and sustained by the involvement of grassroots activists committed to the cause of the unorganized sector. Initiated in Kolkata, West Bengal (India), the Hawkers' Sangram Committee (HSC), has in a period of seven years directly influenced 1.2 million street vendors in West Bengal, and is affiliated to all the major actors in the unorganized sector in India.

Programme
Day One: May 24, 2002 : Building A Regional Profile
Outlining the nature of the regional economy, its relationship with the global forces of neo-liberalization, the urban economy and the impact of these processes on the unorganized.

Examining the political, legal, economic and social context across participating countries, and the development of a situational analysis of the unorganized sector within the region, the discussion of the centralization of resources at the macro and micro levels, leading to the disowning of the poor as rightful stakeholders in the city.

Day Two: May 25, 2002 : The Challenges & The Response
Assessing the experiences of street vendors across the region within the human rights framework, the dynamics related to the realization of entitlements such as the Right to Livelihood and the Right to Housing and the component issues, women and child labour, evictions and displacement.

Identifying the possibilities for intervention through the discussion of experiences with social action and advocacy, the evaluation of strategies - what has worked and what needs to be taken forward, the development of guidelines for a concerted response for the defense and legitimization of the unorganized sector, the assessment of technical and financial resources required to achieve a difference

Day Three: May 26, 2002 : Solidarity & Action
Consolidating the demands and directions of the conference into a Common Resolution of street vendors in the region, determining the actions to be taken by different groups in creating a humane alternative, outlining the common stands and focal events in the region that can sustain and develop the solidarity and resolve generated at the conference in y2002 and y2003.

Other Highlights
The Conference will be held in the premises of the Calcutta Heritage Town Hall, for which permission has been specially granted to the organizers at the behest of the Mayor of Calcutta. Over 150 volunteers from different walks of life, associated with the Hawkers' Sangarsh Samiti, have come together to make it a spectacular, city-wide event, that will bring the demands of street vendors to the headlines not only in West Bengal, but across the nation.

The conference will also showcase documentaries, books and popular education materials on the unorganized sector. The itinerary also includes an exposure to the actual working and living conditions of street vendors in Calcutta through a field visit.

May 21, 2002.