NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 21 – President William Ruto has ruled out a ban on the importation of second-hand clothing (mitumba), saying the government will pursue a balanced market approach that accommodates the sector alongside Kenya’s textile industrialisation agenda.
Speaking in Nairobi, the President acknowledged calls to prohibit used clothing imports but said Kenya’s demographic and economic realities make such a move impractical.
“Sera ya serikali ya Kenya ni kwamba kuna sehemu ya wananchi wa taifa letu la Kenya—na ni sehemu kubwa—wanaotumia nguo ya mtumba Kenya. Na kwa sababu hiyo, lazima tuweke mizani ama balance kati ya market ya new clothing na pia market ya second-hand clothing,” Ruto said.
His remarks come at a critical time for Kenya’s textile sector, following the January 14 approval of the AGOA Extension Act (H.R. 6500) by the US House of Representatives. The legislation, which now awaits Senate ratification, renews the trade preference programme that grants duty-free access to the US market for sub-Saharan African countries.
The extension is particularly important for Kenya’s Export Processing Zones (EPZs), which exported apparel worth about Sh60 billion to the US in 2024. While AGOA is designed to encourage the growth of local textile manufacturing, Ruto said this industrial expansion will not be pursued at the expense of the mitumba trade, which employs an estimated two million Kenyans.
The President’s position marks a departure from the approach taken by some East African Community (EAC) partners. Rwanda, for instance, imposed a ban on used clothing imports in 2018, a move that led to the suspension of its duty-free apparel benefits under AGOA by the United States.
By maintaining what he described as a balanced market, Kenya avoids similar trade repercussions from the US, which is both the largest destination for Kenya’s textile exports and the world’s biggest exporter of second-hand clothing.
