Calls For Fashion Brands To Donate To Kantamanto Market Fire Relief Fund

Campaigners are calling for donations to support the relief effort at Kantamanto Market, one of the world’s largest secondhand clothing market, in Ghana following a fire that has impacted an estimated 10,000 traders. The fire started in the early hours of 2 January. One person is confirmed to have died with hundreds of others requiring medical attention though the full scale of the disaster is still unfolding.

A fund has been set up by The Or Foundation, a non-profit based between the US and Ghana whose work centers on building a “justice-led circular economy” and has been working in Kantamanto Market since 2016. The Or Foundation has put forward $1 million to support the clean-up effort and the traders affected. At the time of publishing, an additional $88,000 has been contributed to the fund, but The Or is hoping to raise a total of $5 million, sparking calls for fashion brands whose discarded clothes are sold through the market to show support.

Photographer Natalija Gormalova who visited the site in the aftermath described the scene in an Instagram post. She said: “[The sellers] stood silently, gazing at the charred remnants of their shops – their livelihoods reduced to ash. Questions hung in the air: Who bears responsibility for this tragedy? Why have fires plagued the market so frequently in recent years? And most pressing of all, who will help them rebuild?”

Around 15 million used garments are imported into Ghana every week, mostly from Global North countries and most are sold at Kantamanto Market. In September, Greenpeace Africa launched a petition to regulate the secondhand clothing market in Ghana, alongside a report which found that 500,000 items of unsold clothing from the market are dumped in open spaces and unofficial landfill sites in the country every week. While the market provides work for around 30,000 traders, a survey by The Or Foundation of 300 traders in November found that 98% do not have access to healthcare.

Sustainable fashion campaigners believe part of the responsibility lies with fashion brands and want to see accountability taken by some of the most commonly found brands at the market which include H&M, Gildan, Adidas, Nike, Marks & Spencer and Next.

Katya Moorman, founder of sustainable and ethical fashion magazine No Kill, posted on Instagram: “Kantamanto market is a cornerstone of sustainability, recirculating 25 million secondhand garments every month and challenging the wasteful practices of the fashion industry… this cycle burdens communities like Kantamanto, where workers take responsibility for managing the fallout of overproduction. If these brands can generate billions in profit, they can – and should – contribute to rebuilding the livelihoods of the very people impacted by their practices.”

Fashion Africa Now, a platform dedicated to centering afrocentric and afrodiasporic perspectives on the industry, said in a statement on Instagram: “This isn’t just about fashion. It’s about justice, sustainability, and rethinking the systems that exploit the Global South while the Global North thrives.” The organisation is calling for the creation of a Global Fashion Solidarity Fund to make brands pay for the impact of their business practices on Global South communities.

Rafael Kouto, a Swiss upcycling designer, said on Instagram: “Local communities can’t and shouldn’t deal with this alone. Companies must fully extend their producer responsibility.”

One of the only retailers to speak out publicly since the fire is luxury secondhand marketplace Vestiaire Collective. It posted on social media urging its community to donate to the fund but confirmed it has not made a donation itself.

Dounia Wone, chief impact officer, Vestiaire Collective told me: “We are deeply saddened by the devastating fire at Kantamanto Market, a hub that represents both the challenges and the opportunities for sustainable fashion. Now more than ever, this tragedy reminds us of the urgent need to rethink how the global fashion system works.

“Vestiaire Collective will be mobilizing our global community to join the fundraising efforts to provide support in rebuilding the market and offering relief during this incredibly difficult time.”

Vestiaire Collective has partnered with The Or Foundation since 2021 to amplify their work and support their shared goals in reducing fashion waste. In October 2022, The Or Foundation hosted a team of Vestiaire Collective employees who volunteered for their work in Kantamanto.

While the true impact of the fire in Kantamanto Market is still unfolding, and the fallout from a backlog of exported secondhand clothing with nowhere to go yet to show, questions are already surfacing around whether the world’s richest fashion brands can foot the bill for such disasters. And if it can’t, then it must redress its practices to stop perpetuating the problems that cause them.