East Africa wants to curb imports of used clothes, but it's not easy

East Africa wants to curb imports of used clothes, but it's not easy. The East African Community (EAC), a regional bloc of which Kenya is a member, has a perennial problem: "How can the region build a thriving fashion industry when it is saturated with cheap cast-offs?" A decade ago, the EAC was primed to impose a ban across its member states, but after some strong-arming from the US, the proposal fell apart.

Uganda has introduced an additional 30% tax on imports in an effort to boost the local garment industry and protect the environment. Days later, the treasury in neighbouring Kenya attempted to change the way it taxed used clothing, but following a backlash from Kenyans, the proposal was swiftly dropped from the Finance Bill. Kenya already applies a 30% customs duty to imports of used clothing - 5% more than it costs to ship in new clothes. According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), Kenya received almost 180,000 tonnes of used clothing in 2022 - a 76% increase on the amount imported in 2013. In Uganda, second-hand clothes are the most sought-after garments, followed by imported new clothing and, lastly, locally manufactured clothing, the government-funded Economic Policy Research Centre found in 2024.

The new 30% environmental levy on used clothing in Uganda comes on top of an existing 35% import duty and 18% VAT. According to research commissioned by the Mitumba Consortium Association of Kenya (MCAK), up to 4.9 million people across East Africa rely on the used clothing trade for work.