Space Management in “Traditional” Markets of the Yaounde Municipality

Market Segmentation has become a very fashionable tool in retail organization in markets of Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon. Studies reveal that internal segmentation is not homogeneous in all major markets of the city and this has led to different results in terms of organisation and market security. This study examines the socioeconomic and urban planning implications of unorganised markets, the changes and challenges that organised markets have brought about as part of the overall city planning process. Through stratified random and purposeful sampling techniques, it was found out that incompatibility exist in both types of markets and that the absence of a priori retail planning in markets is the main cause of the anarchy that characterize their growth and development in the Yaounde metropolis. The study further reveals that while in some markets it is the traders who ensure the internal structure in the absence of official intervention, those that are internally planned before their effective occupation reveal not very outstanding results in satisfying the needs of both the traders and customers due to lapses in planning, administration and case specific circumstances of each market.