Kantamanto Obroniwawu Businesses Association (KOBA), the unified association of market section leaders, have welcomed representatives from four of the world’s largest fashion companies to Kantamanto Market for the launch of the Apparel Recovery Coalition (ARC).

Co-founded by H&M Group, Inditex, BESTSELLER, adidas, The Or Foundation and supported by Circle Economy as an independent facilitator, ARC aims to explore how producer responsibility systems can support circular pathways such as reuse, upcycling, recycling, and responsible waste management in countries that receive large volumes of exported secondhand apparel, such as Ghana.

Speaking at the launch Reverend Opoku Afreh, President of Kantamanto Obroniwawu Businesses Association said, ”Our expectation is that ARC will build upon the existing knowledge, skills and resourcefulness of the Kantamanto community rather than overlook or replace them. We want our members to have access to the necessary infrastructure, investment and opportunities to expand their businesses, improve their livelihoods and strengthen the sustainable practices they have developed over decades.”

The launch took place at the heart of Accra’s Kantamanto Market, one of the world’s largest hubs for secondhand clothing reuse, repair, and upcycling. The market recirculates 25 million garments each month while supporting the livelihoods of tens of thousands of workers and entrepreneurs.

At this scale, Kantamanto offers a valuable lens for understanding how post-consumer textiles are managed, as well as the growing environmental and social impacts associated with them, such as water and soil pollution. Staged within Kantamanto Market’s central Egg Sellers Lane, guests sat under upcycled canopies made by The Or Foundation’s Remanufactory with a podium and sound system made from Cassaboard, a material developed by The Or Foundation’s Material Technology and Transformation Lab made from waste textiles. 

“I thank the Kantamanto Obroni Wawu Businesses Association – KOBA – and The Or Foundation for inviting the Presidency to this market, not a hotel conference room, but here, where the real work happens”, Mr. Afreh noted.

Speaking on behalf of Dr Julius Debrah, Chief of Staff, Deputy Presidential Spokesperson, Shamima Muslim said, “This is a monumental step. For the first time, big brands are coming to Kantamanto not to take pictures but to acknowledge communities like Kantamanto have kept global fashion circular, and that they must pay their fair share.”

Addressing the brand representatives, Gifty Anderson, Secretary of Kantamanto Women’s Association said “Normally these decisions are made from boardrooms overseas leaving us to deal with the impacts of those decisions.  But you have come to us, first to see with your own eyes what we have been dealing with. This is a small but important step to delivering the justice that we need. We must acknowledge the problem before we can begin to find a solution.”

Today, producer responsibility systems are largely tied to the primary markets where products are first sold, while many post-consumer textiles move across borders, and their impacts are felt elsewhere. According to the European Environment Agency, for example, around 1.4 million metric tons of used textiles are exported from the EU annually, mainly to countries in Africa and Asia. 

Over the next two years, ARC will build and test a producer responsibility blueprint that reflects the global nature of post-consumer textile flows, engaging brands, producer responsibility organisations, sorters, recyclers, policymakers and affected communities to help shape practical solutions.

As its first demonstration project, ARC will explore how producer responsibility contributions can help strengthen Ghana’s existing circular textile ecosystem.

The Coalition recognises the work The Or Foundation has done over the past 15 years to support this ecosystem, and it aims to build on that experience while learning from the communities at the heart of the secondhand clothing trade. Through the demonstration project, The Or Foundation will continue to organise and implement initiatives across Accra, such as improvements to infrastructure at Kantamanto Market, environmental remediation, and training programmes.