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Kenya to import mitumba after coronavirus pandemic

Saturday March 28 2020
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Gikomba Market in Kenya's capital Nairobi. PHOTO | FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

By LUKE ANAMI

Kenya is set to lift the ban on imports of second-hand clothes once the Covid-19 pandemic is over, the Industry, Trade and Co-operatives Cabinet Secretary Betty Maina has said.

The Cabinet Secretary last Wednesday announced an immediate temporary suspension of the importation of second-hand clothes as a measure to stop importing the SARs-Cov-2 virus that causes Covid-19 disease.

Ms Maina said the action taken is in line with the conditions as set out by the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs).

“The government has suspended importation of second-hand clothes with immediate effect to safeguard the health of Kenyans and promote local textiles in the wake of coronavirus,” said Ms Maina.

“Most of the Mitumba imports come from China and Pakistan, countries which are the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic. The decision is intended to safeguard Kenyans against the spreading of the coronavirus and is therefore a health issue,” she said.

In an interview with the The EastAfrican, Ms Maina said the Kebs will enforce the suspension as we wait for the situation to improve.

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“It is a requirement by the Kebs to take such an action in times of an epidemic like the Covid-19,” she said.

A recent study by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention shows that the virus can stay longer on different surfaces, including clothes.

Ms Maina, however, said the temporary ban will not in any way affect the policy on Mitumba imports from the US.

Under the African Growth and Opportunity Act, Kenya sold about Ksh40 billion ($400m) worth of textiles and clothing to the US.

“This does not in any way affect our policy on our imports from the US. The decision is strictly an urgent measure to curb the spread of the coronavirus,” added Ms Maina.

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