Working with informality: A hidden path to Zero Hunger

The world is falling behind on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Less than a fifth of the targets are on track, and SDG 2—Zero Hunger—is slipping even further from reach. Since the COVID-19 crisis, global food insecurity has surged with little sign of recovery. Climate shocks, economic instability, and geopolitical tensions are compounding pressures in already fragile areas—while international cooperation budgets shrink. 

We now face an uphill battle: fighting hunger amid a global polycrisis with fewer resources. 

The challenge is immense. But there is a powerful, often overlooked solution at hand: working with informality. 

Informality: the unseen answer

By "informality," we mean the vast networks of economic and social activity that operate outside formal regulations—yet central to daily life for billions. These are not marginal systems. They feed cities, create livelihoods, and serve as informal safety nets when formal institutions fall short.  

From women-run eateries in Nairobi to community kitchens in Cape Town, our work with informal food systems shows that they are wellsprings of social innovation deeply rooted in local communities. With the right support, they could drive meaningful progress toward Zero Hunger.  

Yet too often, informality is ignored—or worse, undermined by policies that favour formality over inclusion and resilience. 

It’s time to change that. 

Informality by the numbers

Consider the scale of informality: 

• Two billion people—60 per cent of the global workforce—work in the informal economy. On the African continent, that figure rises to 84 per cent. 

• Sub-Saharan Africa will account for over half of all new labour market entrants by 2030. With 15 million new jobs needed each year and limited formal sector capacity, up to 90% of new jobs will be informal. 

• In Africa’s urban centres, roughly 70 per cent of households purchase food from informal markets, and in most sub-Saharan African countries, informal channels account for 40 to 90 per cent of total food sales. In Kenya, where 73 per cent of the population is food-insecure, informal food vendors are indispensable. 

The data tells a clear story: informality is not a fringe or temporary issue. It is the present—and future—of livelihoods and food access across the continent of Africa. 

Informal food systems feed cities—and protect people

Across Africa’s cities, informal food systems are the foundation of urban food security. In Nairobi’s Mukuru informal settlement, for instance, households buy the vast majority of their food from informal vendors. These vendors—often women supporting entire families—do more than sell food. They sustain communities. 

These small-scale businesses serve as economic and social lifelines. Informal vendors and eatery operators offer food on credit, or even for free, in times of hardship. They create low-barrier jobs for women and youth. They reduce the burden of unpaid care work by offering affordable and ready-made meals. And in times of crisis, they adapt more quickly than formal systems can. 

Yet despite their critical role, informal food actors are often excluded from formal protections. In low-income countries, social safety nets reach only around 10% of the population. Informal workers—especially women—often face precarious conditions and heavy unpaid care burdens with little or no access to health care, unemployment benefits, or legal protection. 

But as our work in Nairobi and Cape Town demonstrates, where formal systems fall short, communities step in. 

Community-led innovation and social protection in action

In Cape Town, South Africa, community kitchens that emerged during the COVID-19 crisis are evolving into long-term social infrastructure. With our local partner Food Agency Cape Town (FACT), we documented how these kitchens now serve multiple community needs, providing refuge for women and children escaping gender-based violence and even doubling as early childhood centres. 

In Nairobi’s Mukuru informal settlement, a community-run school meal programme—co-created by TMG Research with our local partners the Viwandani Comprehensive Community  Organization (VICCO) and the Ruben Centre—now provides meals for over 1,000 children excluded from public services. Designed collaboratively with parents, it balances nutrition and affordability while fostering the community ownership. 

Also in Mukuru, food vendor associations—supported by TMG, Akiba Mashinani Trust (AMT), and the Kenya National Alliance of Street Vendors and Informal Traders (KENASVIT)—are helping over 200 vendors access bulk purchasing, loans, and support during crises like the 2024 floods in Kenya. They also mediate with city authorities on issues such as food safety. 

With the right support—investment, infrastructure, and recognition—such grassroots social innovations can evolve into inclusive and resilient solutions that reflect the realities of those they serve. 

Rethinking regulation: guard rails, not roadblocks

Food safety matters, but regulations must meet people where they are. Standards that assume access to clean water, stable infrastructure, and permanent premises make compliance impossible for most informal vendors. Instead of enhancing safety, rigid rules often punish the very people providing affordable and accessible food. 

We need smarter, context-sensitive regulations. Tiered standards combined with investments in sanitation, training, infrastructure, and inclusive licensing can raise safety without displacing vendors.

It’s time to stop expecting informal workers to operate like formal businesses in informal environments. Regulations as safeguards—not barriers—can help create a more inclusive, resilient, and food-secure environment for all. 

The way forward: invest, recognize, collaborate

Fighting hunger means embracing informality as a co-creator in the progressive realization of the right to food. We call for the following: 

• Support self-organization: Grassroots collectives like the vendor associations in Mukuru can strengthen local leadership and collective action. 

• Invest in existing solutions: Informal social protection systems that are already working can scale up with the right support. 

• Make informality visible: Utilize participatory action research and accessible digital tools to gather data with communities, not just about them. 

Together, these shifts can unlock progress not only toward Zero Hunger but also gender equality, decent work, and community resilience—accelerating momentum across multiple SDGs. 

In an age of cascading crises and constrained international cooperation, the evidence is clear: informality is not the problem. It’s part of the solution. 

Explore our work with informality and view the full position paper—”Working with Informality for Food Systems Transformation and Resilient Communities”—here.