Why East Africa wants to ban second-hand clothes
2 March 2016
Many people in Africa buy second-hand clothes sent from Europe and the US. But East African countries could ban imports of used clothes and second-hand cars in the next three years, putting an end to a lucrative trade in the region. Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda could all ban second-hand clothes and leather. They make up the East Africa Community (EAC). The EAC directed member countries to buy their textiles and shoes from within the region with a view to phasing out imports by 2019. Before the meeting on Wednesday, the EAC also proposed a reduction in imports of used cars. The EAC suggested phasing out imports in the next three years. However, the newspaper The East African reports that it depends on the five countries' heads of states all agreeing to a common industrialisation policy. It adds that the proposal suggests a ban would only come in after an increase in local textile production. The idea is to give a boost to local manufacturing, and help the economy. One argument is that the imported clothes are so cheap that the local textiles factories and self-employed tailors can't compete, so they either close down or don't do as well as they could. A release from a previous EAC manufacturing and business summit says the leather and textile industries are "crucial for employment creation, poverty reduction and advancement in technological capability" in the region. Second-hand underwear has been called unhygienic. The EAC urged governments to make sure that used-clothes imports complied with sanitary standards. instead urging East African governments to make sure that used-clothes imports complied with sanitary standards. Used knickers were banned in Ghana in 2011 and a Ugandan bill also proposed a ban in the country last year. Second-hand cars have also been blamed for causing accidents. BBC Swahili analyst Alex Mureithi explains that, to avoid paying taxes, people pay bribes at ports to import cars. Those cars then do not go through any safety checks. To give some idea of the extent of smuggled imports, it emerged in December that over 2,700 shipping containers had disappeared at Dar es Salaam port in Tanzania. In Uganda, second-hand garments account for 81% of all clothing purchases, Andrew Brooks says in his book Clothing Poverty. According to UN figures from 2013, South Korea and Canada combined exported $59m worth of used clothes to Tanzania while the UK alone exported $42m worth of used clothes to Kenya.
Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda could all ban second-hand clothes and leather. They make up the East Africa Community (EAC). The EAC directed member countries to buy their textiles and shoes from within the region with a view to phasing out imports by 2019. Before the meeting on Wednesday, the EAC also proposed a reduction in imports of used cars.
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Who wants to ban second-hand clothes and cars?
The EAC suggested phasing out imports in the next three years. However, the newspaper The East African reports that it depends on the five countries' heads of states all agreeing to a common industrialisation policy. It adds that the proposal suggests a ban would only come in after an increase in local textile production.
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When will the ban happen?
The idea is to give a boost to local manufacturing, and help the economy. One argument is that the imported clothes are so cheap that the local textiles factories and self-employed tailors can't compete, so they either close down or don't do as well as they could. A release from a previous EAC manufacturing and business summit says the leather and textile industries are "crucial for employment creation, poverty reduction and advancement in technological capability" in the region.
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Why do they want an import ban?
Second-hand underwear has been called unhygienic. The EAC urged governments to make sure that used-clothes imports complied with sanitary standards. instead urging East African governments to make sure that used-clothes imports complied with sanitary standards. Used knickers were banned in Ghana in 2011 and a Ugandan bill also proposed a ban in the country last year. Second-hand cars have also been blamed for causing accidents. BBC Swahili analyst Alex Mureithi explains that, to avoid paying taxes, people pay bribes at ports to import cars. Those cars then do not go through any safety checks. To give some idea of the extent of smuggled imports, it emerged in December that over 2,700 shipping containers had disappeared at Dar es Salaam port in Tanzania.
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Are second-hand goods bad for your health?
In Uganda, second-hand garments account for 81% of all clothing purchases, Andrew Brooks says in his book Clothing Poverty. According to UN figures from 2013, South Korea and Canada combined exported $59m worth of used clothes to Tanzania while the UK alone exported $42m worth of used clothes to Kenya.
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How common are second-hand clothes?