Accra, Oct. 2, GNA – Four global fashion companies have launch Apparel Recovery Coalition (ARC), an initiative aimed at exploring ways to strengthen the management and reuse of secondhand clothing in countries that receive large volumes of used apparel exports.
The coalition, comprising H&M Group, Inditex, BESTSELLER and adidas, was launched at Kantamanto Market in Accra in collaboration with The Or Foundation, with Circle Economy serving as an independent facilitator.
The initiative seeks to explore how producer responsibility systems could support reuse, upcycling, recycling and responsible waste management within countries such as Ghana.
The launch brought together representatives of the participating companies and members of the Kantamanto Obroniwawu Businesses Association (KOBA), the umbrella association of market section leaders.
Speaking at the launch, the President of KOBA, Reverend Opoku Afreh, said the association expected the initiative to build on the knowledge, skills and resourcefulness developed by the Kantamanto community over several decades.
“Our expectation is that ARC will build upon the existing knowledge, skills and resourcefulness of the Kantamanto community rather than overlook or replace them,” he said.
He called for access to infrastructure, investment and opportunities to enable traders and other workers to expand their businesses, improve their livelihoods and strengthen sustainable practices.
Kantamanto Market is a major centre for the reuse, repair and upcycling of secondhand clothing in Accra.
According to information provided by the coalition, the market recirculates about 25 million garments each month and supports the livelihoods of tens of thousands of workers and entrepreneurs.
The scale of activity at the market has also highlighted environmental and social challenges associated with the management of post-consumer textiles, including concerns about waste, water and soil pollution.
Speaking on behalf of Dr Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, the Deputy Presidential Spokesperson, Shamima Muslim, said the decision to launch the coalition at Kantamanto was significant because it brought the participating companies directly to the community affected by the global secondhand clothing trade.
She said the initiative represented an important step towards recognising the contribution of communities such as Kantamanto to keeping clothing in circulation.
Mrs Gifty Anderson, Secretary of the Kantamanto Women’s Association, said decisions concerning the fashion industry were often made outside the communities that experienced their consequences.
She welcomed the presence of the companies at Kantamanto and said understanding the challenges on the ground was an important step towards developing solutions.
Over the next two years, ARC will develop and test a producer responsibility framework that takes into account the movement of used clothing across national borders.
The initiative will bring together fashion companies, producer responsibility organisations, clothing sorters, recyclers, policymakers and communities affected by the secondhand clothing trade.
As its first demonstration project, the coalition will examine how producer responsibility contributions could help strengthen Ghana’s existing circular textile economy.
The initiative will build on work undertaken by The Or Foundation over the past 15 years in supporting the circular textile ecosystem in Ghana.
Through the demonstration project, The Or Foundation is expected to continue initiatives in Accra, including improvements to infrastructure at Kantamanto Market, environmental remediation and training programmes.
The coalition said the initiative would seek to learn from communities at the centre of the secondhand clothing trade while exploring practical approaches to managing the growing volume of post-consumer textiles moving across borders.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey