VOA新闻杂志2023--Uganda’s President Aims to Ban Used Clothing from the West

People, rich and poor, crowd into Owino Market. Owino is a huge open market in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. People here are mostly looking for secondhand clothing, clothes that have been worn by someone else. The clothes are usually low-cost but still are well made.

Such clothes usually come from Europeans and Americans who no longer want or need them. Businesses purchase the used clothing, and other businesses export them to sell in Africa. The business is valued at millions of dollars.

Some people say the demand for such clothes demonstrates² that Africans believe Western fashion is better than clothes made in Africa.

In 2017, the U.S. Agency³ for International Development aimed to find out about the clothes East Africans buy. Its study found that about two-thirds of people in seven East African countries have "purchased at least a portion⁴ of their clothes from the secondhand clothing market."

Although they are popular, secondhand clothes are facing increasing resistance⁵. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has held power in Uganda since 1986. He declared in August that he was banning imports of used clothing. He said the clothes are "from dead people."

"When a white person dies, they gather their clothes and send them to Africa," Museveni said.

Trade officials have not yet enforced⁶ the president's declaration⁷, which requires a legal measure, such as an executive⁸ order.

Other African governments are trying to stop used clothing imports, saying the business is like sending waste to Africa and harms local cloth industries.

The East African Community trade bloc⁹ includes Burundi, Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. It has advised banning imports of secondhand clothing since 2016. However, member states have not put bans into effect.

In Uganda, the president's statement has spread concern among traders. A ban would put them out of business. Traders sell used clothes across the country of 45 million people. They do business in large open-air markets, roadside stands and even in stores in malls.

A group of traders in Kampala, known as KACITA, opposes a ban on secondhand clothing. The group suggests slowly reducing the imports so that local clothing producers can develop the ability to meet demand.

Some Ugandan clothing makers¹⁰, like Winfred Arinaitwe, admit that the quality of locally made cloth is often poor. Many people choose to buy used clothing, she said.

"Because it lasts longer," she said, "it can easily be seen."

In Owino Market, a ban on used clothes is unbelievable to many. Some say they do not believe the president's threat.

Abdulrashid Ssuuna's job is to get people in the market to visit his brother's used clothing business. He said a ban would deny him a way to make a living.

"It's like they want to chase¹ us out of the country," he said of the president's order. He said he cannot afford to sell new clothes.

The market is competitive¹¹, with sellers¹² sitting behind heaps¹⁴ of clothes and shouting words of welcome to possible buyers.

If he helps his brother sell clothing, "I get something," said Ssuuna, who started this work after dropping out of high school in 2020.

The market is always full of buyers, but business is unpredictable. Traders must try to imagine what people want before other sellers do.

Tadeo Walusimbi has been a used clothing trader for six years. He said some days are better than others, but he warned a government ban would not be supported.

It "will not work for me and for so many people," Walusimbi said.

Words in This Story

fashion–n. a kind of clothing that is popular at a given time

portion–n. a part of a whole amount

mall–n. a large building that has many stores inside it

afford–v. to have enough money to pay for something

heap¹³ –n. a large, disordered group of things

1 chase   

vt.追逐，追赶，追求；n.追赶

参考例句：

• The police grabbed the robbers after a long chase.警察经过长距离追赶后逮住了抢劫犯。
• Would you chase me if I did?如果我逃开了，你会来追吗？

2 demonstrates   

举行示威游行（或集会）( demonstrate的第三人称单数 )； 示范。展示； 显示； 论证

参考例句：

• I hope this message demonstrates my feelings to the students. 我希望这个祝词能表达出我对学生们的感情。
• I hope this demonstrates to you how I feel. 我希望这能向你表明我的感受。

3 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

4 portion   

n.部分，份，命运；v.将...分配，分配

参考例句：

• You are paid your portion not later than a week. 不会晚于一周你就可以得到你那一部分报酬。
• Three thousand dollars is no more than a portion.3000美元只不过是一部分。

5 resistance   

n.抵抗力，反抗，反抗行动；阻力，电阻；反对；adj.抵抗的

参考例句：

• Very little resistance was put up by the enemy.敌人没怎么进行抵抗。
• An aircraft has to overcome the resistance of the air.飞机须克服空气的阻力。

6 enforced   

n.强迫的v.实施( enforce的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；强迫；强制执行

参考例句：

• a period of enforced absence 不得不离开的一段时间
• This reform must be enforced. 此项改革势在必行。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 declaration   

n.宣布，宣告，宣言，声明（书），申报

参考例句：

• We read the declaration posted on the bulletin board.我们读了贴在布告板上的声明。
• At the recent convention a declaration was adopted.在最近举行的大会上通过了一项宣言。

8 executive   

adj.执行的，行政的；n.执行者，行政官，经理

参考例句：

• A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
• He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。

9 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

10 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 competitive   

adj.竞争的，比赛的，好竞争的，有竞争力的

参考例句：

• Some kinds of business are competitive.有些商业是要竞争的。
• These businessmen are both competitive and honourable.这些商人既有竞争性又很诚实。

12 sellers   

n.卖者( seller的名词复数 )；卖方；销售者；销售商

参考例句：

• buyers and sellers transacting business 进行交易的买方和卖方
• All manner of hawkers and street sellers were plying their trade. 形形色色的沿街小贩都在做着自己的买卖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 heap   

n./vt.堆；一堆；堆积；许多，大量；装载

参考例句：

• The gardener began to heap up the fallen leaves.园丁开始把落叶堆起来。
• There was a big heap of stones in the road.路上有一大堆石头。

14 heaps   

adv. <口>很, 非常地 名词heap的复数形式

参考例句：

• They brought home heaps of travel brochures. 他们将成堆的旅行手册带回家。
• The machine flung up great heaps of earth. 这台机器抛起了大片的土。