July 20th, 2011 @Glasgow, Scotland
The annual conference of International Network of Street Papers(INSP) unfolded with hugs and chats. Eighty people from twenty-nine countries got together into Glasgow this year. We are going to spend three days and nights to share the wisdom and ideas through workshops and networking.
Talked with Samba with The Big Issue Zambia in the midst of conference. She said that forty vendors of 18 through 35 years old were mostly unemployed and didn’t have any means of income and access to education and medical service.
Not only bad news but Samba also shared a bright one too. One of the vendors, 20-year-old Rodgers, became a photographer. “He was so intrigued by pictures of our magazine and finally his dream came true!”
Some people wonder if the scheme of street magazine is working out in Africa, because severe financial situation sometimes forces African papers to be closed. “68 percent of our nation is suffering poverty, though some foreigners and middle-class people buy and read our magazines. My dream is to be a bigger voice of the voiceless people,” Samba said.