Ban on mitumba imports to boost local fashion industry
Monday, June 22, 2020 0:01
By ANN MCCREATH |
Shoppers during a past sale by EPZ firms in Nairobi.
PHOTO | FRANCIS NDERITU
On March 25, the Cabinet Secretary for Industrialisation, Ms Betty Maina, suspended the importation of second-hand clothing known as mitumba into Kenya.
Kenyan textile industrialists, through their trade body Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM), have been lobbying for this measure for a longtime, as a means to revive the local industry.
In an eagerly awaited report by Fashion Revolution Kenya, backed by the British Council, the viability of using alternative textile fibres has been researched.
Therefore, for now the most viable options are great design in cotton fabrics with the promotion of local fashion brands and mass distribution systems, which alongside online, harness skills of the current mitumba sellers.
