Nairobi’s Gikomba Market is Kenya’s second-hand clothing hub.
Always buzzing with people looking for bargains of Western brand names that are recycled and sold for a fraction of the original cost, traders seem to have countless bags full of used clothes.
This market is a source of commerce, impacting the local economy and allowing people like John Mwangi to earn an income.
“This job allows me to meet my daily needs. I don’t have the skills for other jobs. says Mr.
Recycling fashion can reduce the large amount of waste that the world generates each year, but the arrival of large amounts of poor quality used textiles creates another waste problem. pointed out by some groups.
Anything that Gikomba market traders can’t sell is either burned or dumped in a waste pile like this.
Here the poorest, like Damaris Wanjiru, hope to earn a little money to clothe their families and feed their children.
A mother of four said: We wear some clothes too. Some people come to buy clothes from us. We make money on sales and wear leftovers. ”
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) is critical of the environmental impact of textile industry production.
The apparel industry accounts for 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, while throwing away $460 billion worth of usable clothing each year.
Janet Chemitey of the environmental group Greenpeace argues that wealthy countries use countries like Kenya as dumping grounds for garbage they cannot recycle themselves.
She said: “The fabric they use to produce these clothes is synthetic, and this synthetic is produced from fossil fuels, which in the long run harms the environment and “It hurts the people who make these clothes and it hurts us who wear them. We want brands to be held accountable and stop producing fast fashion.”
In a report called “Poisoned Gifts,” Greenpeace argues that second-hand clothing is nothing more than textile waste, and imports threaten locally-made goods and the textile industry.
About 30-40% of imports worth about 74,000 tons are said to be finally dumped.
According to Greenpeace, it was difficult for sub-Saharan countries to ban used clothing from the United States. This is because it has preferential trade agreements with the United States under what is called the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
The deal works in favor of the United States because African countries import more from the United States than they export, according to a report posted by the Council on Foreign Relations think tank.
Organizations such as UNEP encourage the growth of new industries that can create new uses for textile waste in Kenya.
One of them is Africa Collect Textiles, which collects used textiles for recycling.
Kenya alone, a Nairobi-based organization, imports more than 200 million kilograms of used textiles each year.
The company’s co-founder, Alex Musembi, agrees with Greenpeace’s findings. Textile waste, waste problem. ”
Africa Collect Textiles upcycles textile waste into rugs, pencil bags and other products and exports them to Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands.
The start-up has an annual revenue of €50,000 and 16 full-time employees.
The company has 35 collection points where you can drop off your unwanted clothes, but only cotton is collected.
Musembi argues that the world should demand more accountability from global fashion brands.
“We’re talking about Nike, Adidas and Tommy Hilfiger, H&M, Shane, etc. They should launch what’s called an EPR fund, Extended Producer Responsibility. It must be given back to companies like Africa Collect Textiles that are trying to solve the chaos in this country.
But even with additional support, there is more textile waste in rivers like this than Africa Collect Textiles can expect to recycle.
