Kantamanto Market Fire Analysis in Ghana: Lessons for Sustainable Fashion 

A massive fire erupted late on Wednesday, January 10, consuming vast sections of the largest used clothes market in the West African country, Ghana, displacing thousands of traders. The fire, which started about 10 p.m. on January 10th, engulfed many parts of the market. (Brennan, E. 2025)

 Cleanup work is underway, and traders have started rebuilding burned-down buildings, showing their determination in the face of disaster. (Johnson, S. 2025) 

Hundreds of traders, many specializing in the resale of used clothes, now face an uncertain future. The fire disaster has left thousands of traders in the Ghanaian capital of Accra staring down ruin as their stalls and therefore livelihoods have been reduced to smoke and ashes. (Monde, L. 2025)

Kantamanto market is the world’s biggest second-hand textile market. It has been an important bridge for sustainable textile initiatives contributing to the 3R principles in circular fashion: Reuse, Repair, Recycle.  According to the Or Foundation, an environmental justice nonprofit that works with the used-clothing community, The fire destroyed more than 60 percent of the sprawling warren of stalls that make up Kantamanto Market’s retail-facing side and inflicted “catastrophic damage” to at least 10 of its 13 equally extensive sections. Some 30,000 people eke a living from the 15 million garments that arrive at the market from the United States, Europe and Australia every week to be resold, though a contested 40 percent also exits as trash that ends up fouling Ghana’s landfills, streets and beaches, creating an environmental and public health crisis.  Much of it comes from the Global North where the market’s traders are responsible for recirculating 25 million secondhand items every month through resale, reuse, repair and remanufacturing. Surprisingly, or not, this isn’t the first time a fire has broken out in the market — it has become an almost annual occurrence, albeit not quite on this scale. These fires hold deeper implications for sustainable textiles and circular fashion. Kantamanto market is the biggest storage of used textiles waiting to be reused, repaired or resold across the globe. With new, innovative sustainable fashion initiatives many brands in the Global North have actively started shifting their business model from linear to circular economy to reduce their negative environmental footprints. 

For this, Kntamanto second-hand textile market in Accra is of crucial importance offering broad margins for innovation.  Kantamanto market is the last stop for much of the world's used clothing. But because of the overwhelming supply, more than a third of the garments leave as waste, piling up in landfills, clogging water systems, and polluting the ocean. According to Vogue Business, the ad-hoc construction that enabled the market’s rapid expansion has left it unstable and prone to fires. It is also unprotected from heavy rains, meaning that flooding routinely shuts the market down.  (Webb, B. 2025)

Meanwhile, American donation centers, such as Goodwill or Salvation army export clothing that does not sell in the US thrift stores to sorting facilities across the globe. Shipping containers of tightly-packed, 125-pound bales arrive in the ports of Accra for distribution. Retailers buy the bales from anywhere between $100 to $300 without knowing its contents. Many of the cheap garments are from companies that produce "fast fashion," or mass-marketed clothing that uses inexpensive material and labor. What doesn't sell in the market is then transferred to giant landfills that rival nearby buildings in height. Consequently, Ghana has become fast fashion’s dumping ground. (Reynolds, I., & Harger, E. 2023) 

The fire disaster sparked responsibility and transparency concerns with many attributing the damaged to large fashion retailers. 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. However, One of the only retailers to speak out publicly since the fire is luxury secondhand marketplace Vestiaire Collective. It posted on social media on 3 January urging its community to donate to the fund. The retailer has since confirmed it will be making a donation for an undisclosed sum to The Or Foundation’s appeal and will be posting on its social media to invite other brands to donate. Pinnock, O. (2025, January 6).

Kantamanto is not only a market, it is a place that frames the livelihood for thousands of people. The inventory of traders is destroyed by fires, and at the same time it disrupts the circular economy them as traders sustain. Without this local economy, there’s less reuse or upcycling of textiles, and more waste ends up in landfills or the environment. The fires highlight the need  for appropriate localized textile recycling and processing systems within Ghana. Having such systems in place would help the country reduce its reliance on imports which in turn would serve it better in managing textile waste. Brands, especially those exporting used clothes, could  use this as an opportunity to develop more transparent supply chains and partnerships with local organizations in Ghana. Initiatives that enable repair, reuse, and correct recycling could take the pressure off of the second-hand market. (Pinnock, O. 2025)

Finally, a lot of European and North American brands talk about their sustainability initiatives and offer customers opportunities to donate old clothes, but little is said about what happens to those garments after they are dropped off at collection bins. A lot of donated clothing ends up exported to countries like Ghana, where much of it can’t be resold, particularly lower-quality fast fashion. The rest is waste that places like Kantamanto can’t handle. To combat this, fashion brands and second-hand exporters will need to work with local organizations  in destination countries to build  more transparent and traceable systems.

References:

Johnson, S. (2025, January 3). Massive cleanup under way in Ghana after fire destroys one of world’s biggest secondhand markets. The Guardian; The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jan/03/massive-cleanup-under-way-after-fire-destroys-one-of-worlds-biggest-secondhand-markets-ghana?utm_source=chatgpt.com

Brennan, E. (2025, January 3). Huge fire at Ghanaian clothing market destroys hundreds of stalls. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/03/africa/ghana-fire-kantamanto-market-secondhand-clothing-intl/index.html

Monde, L. (2025, January 3). Ghana: Fire guts Kantamanto market, heart of Africa’s used clothing trade. Le Monde.fr; Le Monde. https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2025/01/03/ghana-fire-guts-kantamanto-market-heart-of-africa-s-used-clothing-trade_6736662_4.html

Webb, B. (2025, January 3). The Or Foundation leads the industry response to the Kantamanto Market fire. Here’s what it means for sustainable fashion. Vogue Business. https://www.voguebusiness.com/story/sustainability/what-the-kantamanto-market-fire-means-for-sustainable-fashion

Kent, S. (2025, January 3). Fire Devastates Ghana’s Kantamanto Used Clothing Market. The Business of Fashion. https://www.businessoffashion.com/news/global-markets/kantamanto-fire-secondhand-clothing-trade-ghana/

Reynolds, I., & Harger, E. (2023, June 5). Photos: Fast fashion overhwhelms Ghana’s largest market. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-fast-fashion-ghana-largest-secondhand-market-kantamanto-landfills-2023-6?international=true&r=US&IR=T#through-workshops-and-support-from-the-or-foundation-kantamanto-retailers-are-learning-how-to-sew-and-make-a-profit-from-mended-clothing-12

Pinnock, O. (2025, January 6). Calls For Fashion Brands To Donate To Kantamanto Market Fire Relief Fund. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliviapinnock/2025/01/06/calls-for-fashion-brands-to-donate-to-kantamanto-market-fire-relief-fund/