Mitumba Kenya – Second Hand Clothes With an Unforeseen Cost.

Mitumba Kenya – the business of buying and selling second-hand clothes, is a boon and a bane for Kenya. As the eternal bargain hunter, I adore visiting Kenya’s famous clothing markets. ‘Why?’ I hear you ask, ‘What’s so great about Mitumba?’ Here’s my insight on why Mitumbu is good, and perhaps more importantly, why is Mitumba in Kenya bad.

I’m working at my desk, tapping away on the laptop as sunlight streams through my window. It’s rained ferociously all week, and mud is reaching epic proportions. Here, in my garden, the jacaranda shakes a vibrant rainfall of violet leaves onto the pea green lawn, and my coffee is excellent, but all I’m thinking is, ‘Should I go to Toi Market?’ As the rain increases in tempo and the world shudders under the electric lights of an African storm, I am aware that I would be crazy to give up the rarified warmth of my safe little cocoon to tramp the sludged streets of my local Mitumba, but the magic is in the maybe. The occasional gem that makes all the hassle worth it. In the mazed streets of Toi market, the stalls are a rabbit warren of higgly piggly makeshift stands. In the summer, Toi’s dusted streets are savagely hot, and vendors border on aggressive as they call out ‘Mama, mama, come look’ with ear-jarring repetition. In the rain, the streets flood with what I hope is rainwater, and motorbikes whizz up and down narrow channels. Intimidating? Sure. A veritable treasure trove of hidden gems? Definitely – if you’re up for rummage. I’ve found Ralph Lauren, Gucci and Prada dresses with tags for a couple of dollars—designer handbags for under 10 USD. With perseverance and immunity to heat and hassle, massive bargains can be found. Kenya’s Mitumba second hand markets are addictive.

Mitumba Kenya – A Brief History

Let’s start at the beginning. Forty-odd years ago,, Kenya’s textile industry, was thriving offering employment to people all over the country from farmers to weavers and designers. In the 1980s, the textile industry in Kenya experienced a boom as the government imposed a 100% tariff on imported goods. At this time, the textile industry employed 200,000 households and 30% of Kenya’s manufacturing workforce, and Kenya exported garments as far as the United States. However, in the 1990s and 2000s, Kenya began to lose its advantage against other textile producers because of a series of political and economic reforms that negatively affected Kenya’s buying and selling power. At the same time, Asia ramped up its textile exportation and international powers cut investment in African countries. The result was a reduction in the maintenance and renewal of machinery. Add into the mix a series of droughts that damaged Kenya’s cotton harvest and the seal was signed on Kenya’s blossoming home spun industry. As Kenya’s textile manufacturing diminished, the importation of second-hand clothes began to boom, and by the mid-1990s, 85% of Kenya’s textile industry had shut down and was replaced by Mitumba.

Mitumba Kenya’s Second Hand Clothing Boom

Mitumba is seen by some as a good thing, after all it employs around 2 million Kenyans and provides cheap clothing to the nation. Mitumba, which means bales in Kiswahili, works by collecting second-hand clothes donated by charities, and overproduced items from manufacturers, and packaging them for resale. Bales are sorted according to type: women’s dresses, baby clothes, men’s trousers, and by grade, and priced accordingly. Kenyan entrepreneurs can purchase these bales and sell the individual items for a profit. On the surface, it seems the ideal solution; the excess of clothes produced by 1st world countries has a place to go. Mitumba creates job opportunities and enables Kenyans to work for themselves and own their own business, thus providing Kenyans with business related skills. The Kenyan government benefits from import taxes and charging Mitumba vendors a market stall fee. The Kenyan people have access to cheap clothing, and the do-gooders get to feel smug. Win-win, right?

Ever heard the saying, ‘If you give a man a fish, you have fed him for a day, but if you teach him to fish, you have fed him for a lifetime.’ The same goes for the textile industry in Kenya. People creating textiles in Kenya came from all walks of life: farmers, weavers, sewists, textile designers, engineers, technicians, fabric printers, cloth mills, packaging companies, supply chain & transport needs. These people were independent and not reliant upon charitable donations for their income. Many were skilled, with jobs passed down through families or learned through apprenticeships. The purchase and resale of bales of second-hand clothing has seriously impacted Kenya’s ability to clothe itself. Kenya is now one of the world’s largest importers of second-hand clothing, and while some 2 million Kenyans work in the Mitumba trade, it is entirely reliant upon richer countries. As a strategy, the importation of second-hand clothing is in direct opposition to the governmental policy of Buy Kenya – Build Kenya. A policy which was introduced to increase competitiveness and consumption of locally produced goods and services.

The Huge Environmental Cost of Mitumba in Kenya

Kenya has become a dumping ground for unwanted textiles from developed countries. Textile waste pollution is around 74,000 tonnes per year, and most of it ends up in landfills; if it makes it that far, the ruddy streets and waterways of Nairobi and Mombasa are clogged with cast-off fabric, plastic buttons and rusting zips. Landfills stand four storeys high, their contents emitting dangerous toxic gases as they decompose, polluting the soil and degrading the natural environment. The Changing Markets Foundation (CMF) states that Kenya receives around 37 million items of junk clothing from Europe alone each year. An increasing number of items that arrive in Kenya in Mitumba are damaged or dirty and not fit to be sold in the markets. According to Greenpeace, around 40 % of Mitumba goods are sent straight to landfills. It seems to me that developed countries are offloading their landfill items in the guise of helping poorer nations.  

As responsible people and environmental warriors, we should boycott Mitumba, right? But the answer is more complex. During COVID-19, the government banned the import of Mitumba items, fearing that the clothing would spread the virus. The result was that nearly one million Kenyans had their income cut off. Data from MSC showed that only 39% of Kenyans set aside money for emergencies, and when COVID-19 hit, those backup funds ran out quickly. With their livelihood cut off, Kenyans whose trade was in Mitumba had no inherent skills to fall back on and struggled to feed and clothe their families. The social and economic cost of shutting Mitumba down was huge. Today Mitumba is back and bigger than ever, albeit with inflated prices, but Covid taught us that a total ban on Mitumba is no longer practical. The import of second-hand clothing has become a way of life for the Kenyan people. Not only is it a financial lifeline but Kenyans appreciate having access to good quality fashionable clothing that is affordable for everyone.

So what’s the solution? Well, the government is creaming 12 billion shillings a year from Mitumba, so it isn’t going anywhere soon. The only solution seems to be to work on rebuilding Kenya’s textile industry while implementing guidelines and restrictions on imported items into Kenya. If all Mitumba Kenya items are wearable and good quality, then bales would be sold in their entirety and not confined to landfills or dumped in the streets. In addition, reducing second-hand clothing supply may help reinvigorate Kenya’s textile industry. It is entirely possible for the local textile industry to exist alongside Mitumba considering the two segments deal in different markets and operate at different price points.

What can we do to help? Share stories like this, and push global governments to address the inequalities in the system. In the meantime, I’ll support local businesses by continuing to shop at Toi. You never know, one day I’ll find that glass slipper which is no doubt lurking within a pile of second-hand Crocs. Buy Kenya, Build Kenya.

Best Mitumba Markets in Nairobi

• Toi Mitumba – Ngong Road – Toi is where I go. Its the closest and I generally feel safe there.
• Gikomba Mitumba – Nairobi’s largest market
• Ngara Market
• Kibuye Market – Near Kibuye roundabout
• Kawangware market – Kawangware
• Kariokore – along Kariokore Road

Further Reading

https://theexpatmummy.com/33-best-restaurants-in-nairobi-2023/

https://theexpatmummy.com/kids-nairobi-what-to-do-and-where-to-go/

https://theexpatmummy.com/21-incredible-family-friendly-resorts-in-kenya/

https://theexpatmummy.com/kenya-travel-guidelines-before-you-travel/

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