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Hawkers have virtually taken over the pedestrian walkways and the shoulders of streets in the central business district (CBD) of Accra. The activities of the traders are making both human and vehicular movement difficult in the commercial hub of Accra, as people compete for the limited space. The nuisance caused by the hawkers and other traders begins from the COCOBOD Head Office in Accra, through the former National Investment Bank (NIB) area to Okaishie and Makola. The fear is that the situation can get worse with the approach of Christmas, unless an urgent action is taken to control the teaming hawkers and traders bent on carrying out their business activities in the CBD, instead of at such places as the Pedestrian Shopping Mall at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle. The median in front of the Merchant Bank in the heart of the CBD is besieged by hawkers and porters whose activities are not controlled by anyone. Food vendors prepare and sell food right there, while babies are sometimes left to crawl without supervision. Traders selling second-hand shoes have, for instance, taken over a section of the road close to the Liberty House, a situation which has created congestion and traffic jams along the stretch. For many of the hawkers, the survival instinct supercedes all other considerations when the issue of hawking is being discussed. The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) has the mandate to move or relocate traders whose activities are obviously a nuisance, not only to pedestrians and motorists but also shop owners who have invested huge sums in securing shops in the CBD. As part of measures to control hawking all over the metropolis, the AMA passed a bye-law in 2010 which made even those who patronised hawking goods offenders who could be dealt with in the same manner as those hawking. An official of the AMA who wanted to remain anonymous said even though the assembly was aware of the situation, it was incapacitated at the moment to take any resolute measure to deal with the problem. He said the AMA was thinking about finding a solution with a human face. Even as the AMA grapples with the problem, a worrying but growing trend is the situation where traders along the walkways display vegetables on thin mats. While it is not clear the number of people selling on the streets of Accra, particularly the Okaishie area, most people believe that hawkers and petty traders put their lives in danger as they inhale, on a daily basis, exhaust fumes (carbon monoxide ) and dust. Research has it that the inhalation of carbon monoxide inhibits the blood�s ability to carry oxygen to vital organs such as the heart and the brain and can, for instance, have severe effects on the fetus of pregnant women. �Most of us know about these things but we must earn a living to support our families,� Maame Abena Gyekyi told the Daily Graphic in an interview in Accra.