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‘Where is our future’: Uganda declares war on used clothing

East Africa imports about an eighth of the world’s used clothing, providing jobs for some 355,000 people.

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A woman selling second-hand clothes arranges several items at her stall while waiting for costumers in Owino, Kampala's largest second-hand clothes market.
A woman selling secondhand clothes arranges several items at her stall while waiting for costumers in Owino, Kampala's largest secondhand clothes market. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
By AFP
Published On 7 Dec 2023

For nearly three decades, the chaotic, overcrowded Owino secondhand market in Uganda’s capital has been the cornerstone of Hadija Nakimuli’s life, helping the widowed shopkeeper build a house and raise 12 children.

But a potential government ban on the sale of used clothing threatens to sever this crucial lifeline for Nakimuli and tens of thousands of vendors like her.

“Where is our future if they stop secondhand clothes?” the 62-year-old asked, rummaging through her stash of underwear, dresses, shoes and bags.

Established in 1971, the sprawling market employs some 80,000 people, 70 percent of them women, according to Kampala city authorities.

“Other than students, my clients include ministers [and] members of parliament who call me to deliver clothes to their air-conditioned offices,” said Joseph Barimugaya, whose stall stocks menswear.

“This trade should not be tampered with. Everyone benefits, including the government, which gets taxes,” the father of four said.

Every day, hundreds of customers squeeze through the narrow alleys separating the makeshift wooden stalls, eager to grab a bargain.

Here, a secondhand Pierre Cardin blazer goes for 40,000 Ugandan shillings ($11), a fraction of the price of a new one.

“As a teacher, I earn less than 500,000 shillings [$131]. If I am to buy a new garment, it means I would spend all my salary on clothing,” Robert Twimukye, 27, said while shopping at Owino on a Saturday afternoon.

He is not alone.

Although there are no official figures available, the Uganda Dealers in Used Clothings and Shoes Association estimates that 16 million people – one in three Ugandans – wear used clothing.

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Sellers offering second-hand clothes wait for costumers at a market in Kampala.
'Everyone is into secondhand clothes. Only a few people in Uganda can afford new clothes,' said Allan Zavuga, retail manager of Think Twice, which employs 30 staff across three branches in the country. 'Banning it in Uganda is doing a disservice to the population and also the country at large,' he said. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
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A man carries a load of second-hand clothes at a market in Kampala.
East Africa imports about an eighth of the world's used clothing, providing jobs for some 355,000 people who earn $230m a year, according to a 2017 study by the US government's aid agency USAID. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
Sellers offering second-hand clothes wait for costumers at a market in Kampala.
But the sector has also been a longstanding sore point for governments in Africa, who say the cast-offs harm the domestic textile industry. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
A man irons second -hand clothes before displaying them to be sold at a market in Kampala.
'These clothes are from the dead in a foreign country. When a white [person] dies, the clothes are sent to Africa,' President Yoweri Museveni said in August this year. 'I have declared war on secondhand clothes to promote African wear,' he said. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
A woman takes her item from a shop attendant after purchasing at Green Shop, a modern second-hand shop in Kampala.
Uganda's state minister for trade, David Bahati, said it was a question of 'dignity'. If the proposed ban goes ahead, 'we will be able to replace these second-hand clothes', he added. 'It cannot be done in one day, but we can do it in a gradual manner,' Bahati said. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
A man carries a load of second-hand clothes at a market in Kampala.
The government is examining the issue, intending to potentially implement the ban in January. 'The government is ready to give investors incentives ... such as tax holidays to ensure we process our cotton into new garments to cover the market demands,' Bahati said. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
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Vendors display second-hand clothes while waiting for costumers at a market in Kampala.
Uganda has been here before. In 2016, Museveni sought to ban used clothing as part of an East African initiative to develop domestic industries but faced significant opposition from the Kampala City Traders Association. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
Buyers pick clothes from Green Shop, a modern second-hand shop in Kampala.
Diplomatic considerations also played a part. Initially, the East African Community regional bloc put up a united front. But the alliance cracked after Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda baulked at the prospect of retaliatory loss of duty-free access to US markets. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
Sellers offering second-hand clothes wait for costumers at a market in Kampala.
In the end, Rwanda decided to go it alone and imposed steep taxes on used clothing in 2016, leading to a sharp drop in imports and an increase in the smuggling of secondhand goods to meet demand. Two years later, the US suspended duty-free benefits for apparel from Rwanda in a tit-for-tat move. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
Vendors display second-hand clothes to a buyer inside a market in Kampala.
At Owino, geopolitics is far from the minds of shoppers and sellers alike. 'Who did the government consult [before deciding] to ban secondhand?' second-generation shopkeeper Harriet Musoke Kyambadde asked, her voice trembling with indignation. 'Banning this business will be sending me into abject poverty,' the mother of three said, throwing her hands in the air. [Badru Katumba/AFP]
A man selling second-hand clothes stands while waiting for costumers at a market in Kampala.
A man selling second-hand clothes stands while waiting for customers at a market in Kampala. [Badru Katumba/AFP]

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