The Ghana Used Clothing Dealers Association has debunked claims that 40% of imported used clothing ends up as waste in landfills, burning sites, and beaches across the country.
The Association described the report—widely circulated by the OR Foundation—as misleading and an attempt to collapse the thriving used clothing industry in Ghana.
To register their displeasure, members of the Association embarked on a sit-down strike, with support from the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA).
Speaking to Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Aikins Boakye Mensah, an executive member of the Association, said the OR Foundation has, over the years, circulated inaccurate and damaging reports that portray the Kantamanto Market and Ghana’s secondhand clothing trade as a dumping ground for textile waste.
“They’ve claimed in international publications that over 15 million garments enter Kantamanto weekly and that 40% end up as waste. We find these figures highly exaggerated, misleading, and not representative of the realities on the ground,” he said.
Mr. Mensah stressed that the majority of used clothing imported into Ghana is sorted, reused, reworked, and resold — forming the backbone of a circular economy that sustains more than 30,000 direct traders and over 100,000 additional livelihoods.
These include head porters (kayayei), tailors, truck pushers, transport operators, loaders, and food vendors, who operate daily around the Kantamanto Market.
He added that the used clothing trade is not a waste problem, but a livelihood solution, providing affordable clothing for millions of Ghanaians and employment for thousands of families.
“The OR Foundation’s portrayal of our trade as a global environmental hazard is not only an attack on the dignity of hardworking Ghanaians, but also an attempt to undermine a vibrant sector of the informal economy,” he said.
He further emphasized, “The OR Foundation does not speak for us, nor do they represent our lived experiences or interests. We reject the portrayal of Ghana as a global dumping site — it is false, harmful, and disrespectful.”
Mr. Mensah called on government, civil society organizations, development partners, and the media to independently investigate these claims, engage directly with people in the trade, and support efforts to preserve the dignity and sustainability of the industry.
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